A Partner To Be Proud Of
by HockeyGirl35
Summary: My first ever story, an exercise for English class. Just a friendship story following Slade and Oliver. ONLY FRIENDSHIP! No romance whatsoever. More info in the Author's Note
1. Chapter 1

Author's Note: This is the first story I have ever written. It's probably pretty bad but it's for an

English class exercise and I'm trying to think of ways to make it better. I've been following the

episodes pretty closely but trying to add in some parts of my own and changing small details. I don't

really know how many parts this story will have yet, probably at least continue to the end of this

season. I chose these two characters because there are no stories with them. Let me be clear, this is

FRIENDSHIP ONLY! No romance whatsoever. Alright, I hope you enjoy it and if you can give me

advice I'd appreciate it! Thanks! Also, I own nothing.

Oliver was pretty certain Yao Fai had made a mistake in his directions when he finally walked into the jungle clearing containing a crashed plane. Since standing around outside, waiting to be killed didn't seem plausible, he walked into the still partially intact cabin. Oliver had just enough time to register that someone was living in the plane before a figure jumped through the ceiling behind him and had a machete pressed against his neck.

"Twitch, and I'll open your throat. How many more with you?"

Oliver was startled by the Australian's sudden appearance but he blamed the situations that had led to him being here that the best response he could come up with was a shaky, "What?"

The Australian pressed the machete even closer to his throat, saying, "You have ten seconds to tell me something I believe before I cut out your voice box."

By this time Oliver was less scared and more indignant, "Wait wait wait. Yao Fai sent me here and I'm pretty sure it wasn't so you could kill me!"

The stranger pushed him away but still had the machete poised and ready to use. "What?"

Oliver turned to look at his newest captor, noting the fleeting startled expression that crossed his face at Oliver's words before the man's face turned hard once again. "Yuo Fai gave me directions to your...plane."

The Australian glared at him, giving him a once over while Oliver stared defiantly back. Finally, he lowered the machete and asked, "What happened to your unit?"

Once again, Oliver was clueless as to what he was talking about. "What unit?"

The stranger looked at him like he was stupid. "You're military unit! Green Beret? Marine? You're obviously American, so which is it?"

Oliver replied, "I'm not a soldier! I was shipwrecked here!"

The Australian looked even more disgusted but all he said was, "What do you have in your hand?"

Oliver glanced down, noting he was still clutching his map. He handed it over, "It's the map Yao Fai gave me to find you."

The man took it from him, sheathing his weapon and spreading the map out on a crate, bending over to study it.

Oliver, still standing off to the side, was of the mind-set that it was probably best to stay silent, the only problem being that he had never been one to be quiet very long. "What do you think Yao Fai meant by survive? Besides not getting killed."

The man glanced at him and straightened up, replying, "There's an airstrip 10 klicks north of here. It's the key off this island. Yao Fai and I have been observing it for months, familiarizing ourselves with their operations...we were _supposed_ to get off this island together." He glanced down before continuing, " But then Yao Fai was compromised...and we were separated."

He turned and opened one of the crates and, grabbing a second machete out of it, walked closer and tossed it to Oliver, who barely caught it. "...What's this for?"

The stranger gave Oliver a look, almost as if he were sizing him up. "I think Yao Fai sent you because he knew I could not take that airstrip alone."

Oliver slightly shook his head at that, saying, "Sounds like Yao Fai."

It was clear the Australian was just as put-out when he replied, "He is a softer judge of character than I am." Oliver looked up into the man's brown eyes, seeing nothing but coldness, as the man continued, "If you're going to have my back, I need to know you can cover it."

Without any warning, he pulled his machete and jabbed at Oliver, who quickly jumped back and put up his own machete to block the next swipe. As soon as he allowed the man to knock his own machete to the side and press his blade to Oliver's neck, he realized he'd made a mistake.

The man asked, "What are you doing? Fight. Back."

Oliver clenched his teeth and charged the man but he easily dodged and once again had Oliver on defense. "Keep your blade up! Always stay behind your sword!"

Oliver was getting extremely irritated by the pure absurdness of the whole situation by this time but still tried to follow the man's directions. He lunged and the next thing he knew the man side-stepped and Oliver unceremoniously crashed into a crate.

The man turned to him in disgust, "You have no skill. No strength. No training." He walked right up and got in Oliver's face, "To say you fight like a girl would be a compliment!"

By this time Oliver was tired, hurt, and humiliated, he put as much venom as in his voice as he could muster as he replied, "I told you, I'm not a soldier! I was shipwrecked here. I killed the guy that was wearing this uniform by accident!"

In a low voice, the man asked, "Where was Yao Fai?"

Oliver knew before he answered that this would not end well, "He told me to run...and I did."

The man glared at him, barely contained fury showing in his face, before knocking Oliver out cold.


	2. Chapter 2

Author's Note: Here's the next chapter, I actually have all of it written up to the latest episode, Dead To Rights. I'll try to get it all posted as quickly as possible.

The first thing Oliver noticed upon awaking was that he was sitting on a chair with his hands tied behind his back. The stranger was standing in front of him with his back turned.

Oliver tried to get his hands undone without being noticed but the rope was so tight it was digging into his wrists and in a few seconds the man turned towards him, "Sorry. It's nothing personal."

Oliver stared up at him, confused and already not liking where the conversation was headed.

The man walked towards his chair while talking, "The airstrip is a very fortified position. I've been there and I cannot take it on my own." By this time the man was standing directly in front of Oliver and proceeded to pull out his machete.

Oliver knew he had to stall before the man killed him so he said the first thing that came to mind, "S-so what? Huh? You're just gonna kill me?!" He almost succeeded in keeping the quaver out of his voice but he was getting more panicked by the moment.

The man put his blade to Oliver's throat with a smirk, "Like I said...it's nothing personal." Then he got more serious, "But if you're alive they will find you and if they find you they will torture you until you give up my location and I cannot allow for that to happen."

The man was clenching his teeth by the time he finished talking and Oliver knew he didn't have much time to make his escape. He had been twisting his hands in the bindings during the man's explanation but couldn't get them loose.

As a last ditch attempt Oliver jumped up out of his chair, standing just inches from the man apparently bent on killing him. "Hey, no, wait! Please don't do this, alright? I'm not gonna say anything to them!"

The man shoved Oliver back into the chair, telling him not to make this difficult and that he would make sure Oliver didn't feel a thing. Suffice to say, this did not put him any more at ease; Oliver was in full on panic attack mode by this point and jerked his hands in the bindings so hard he dislocated his shoulder. He screamed in pain and and leaned forward. Then, gasping, he stood up to face his executor, vaguely aware of the confusion and pity he could see in the man's brown eyes. Oliver had gotten his hands loose with that last jerk and figured that if he was about to die, he was going to at least cause some pain for the one killing him. He launched a punch, catching the man square in his face. The man didn't go down as Oliver expected him to though, instead he grabbed Oliver's coat collar and brought him closer. Oliver thought he was going to break his neck until the man started laughing. The only thing Oliver could think was, " Yuo Fai sent me to a lunatic."

Just like that the man, still keeping Oliver close, let go of his collar and held out his hand. Not knowing what else to do, Oliver grasped the man's hand.

The man introduced himself, "Slade Wilson."

Oliver considered this a strange time for introductions but as he was still certain the man was insane and grateful he wasn't dead he replied in kind, "Oliver Queen."

Slade was still grasping Oliver's hand as he said, "Well, Oliver Queen, there might be a fighter inside of you after all."

Oliver nodded his head and looked at Slade's smirking face, relieved to see the coldness gone, replaced with...amusement? Well, why not? The guy was obviously unstable. Slade let go of Oliver and turned, walking towards one of the many crates stacked around the makeshift shelter.

Oliver watched as Slade rummaged around in it for a moment before pulling out a sling. Once he had it, he closed the crate and turned back towards where Oliver was still standing, holding his injured shoulder. He took a couple steps toward Oliver but stopped as Oliver took a step back, weariness showing in his face and body language. Oliver wasn't exactly afraid of the man, he just didn't want him anywhere near himself right now. He was tired, hurting, and everyone he'd met since coming to this hell hole had only caused him more pain.

Both were silent for a few moments until Slade said in a somewhat softer tone, "Take it easy, kid. I'm just going to fix your shoulder up."

Oliver considered this; as he'd already concluded, what he felt towards Slade wasn't fear, even though he should by all means be afraid of this guy. He didn't really think Slade would hurt him and his shoulder was aching pretty badly by this point, changing from the burning pain to a sharp ache that was getting worse every time he moved. Even if he was worried about Slade hurting him, he really didn't have a choice but to trust him for help. He sighed, giving up the tough image he was trying to portray.

Slade had been waiting patiently for Oliver to finish his analysis of the situation while trying to figure out a bit about him while he waited. He'd already established the kid was tough and he could see the intelligence in his blue eyes as he stood calculating Slade. Finally, Slade heard him sigh and saw his posture relax. He took this as a sign of acceptance from Oliver and closed the distance between them, inspecting Oliver's shoulder as he did. Slade knew Oliver was not going to like this next part and didn't attempt to warn him first, instead quickly doing what the medics at his old base taught him to put a dislocated shoulder back in place.

Oliver yelled in pain as Slade reset his shoulder but almost immediately afterward the ache reduced to a dull throb, much more bearable than the earlier pain.

Slade held up the sling and fixed Oliver's arm into a comfortable position that would keep his shoulder from jostling too much. "Alright, it should start feeling better pretty quickly now," he said, finally stepping back. He directed Oliver towards the chair he had set up near the makeshift fire ring he'd made near the back of the plane and walked outside to grab some wood. He needed to think about what he was going to do now...when he looked at Oliver, he saw a kid but this island and their upcoming mission of taking the airfield demanded that Oliver act like not only a man, but a soldier. That was it, then. He was going to treat Oliver like a recruit, he couldn't go easy on him. The mission depended on it. Slade's chance of finally getting off the island depended on it. Now that he'd resolved that, he grabbed some wood from the pile he'd stacked outside the door and headed back in, crouching at the fire ring silently as he got the flames going. Once he was sure the fire wouldn't die out, he stood up and grabbed another chair, setting it across from where Oliver had been sitting quietly this whole time. Slade wanted to know more about how this kid would respond to certain things like authority, stress, and so on, things he would have to put up with quite a bit while working with Slade, so he spoke up,"You know, this does not change anything between you and I. It takes two men to take the airfield. If you compromise my getting of this island, I will kill you. You've had your second chance."

Oliver got the feeling that Slade was testing him but what he was expecting to come of it, Oliver had no idea. Even with the threat of death Slade had thrown into his little speech, Oliver didn't feel much fear of the man, which he thought was crazy. He had totally thought the guy would kill him less than two hours ago yet now when Slade had literally just told him if Oliver screwed up he would personally kill him, Oliver was already fairly confident this man wouldn't hurt him. All he replied was, "You need me just as much as I need you." Oliver figured that was a bluff, at least the part about Slade needing him. However, he was telling the truth when he said he needed Slade. He honestly didn't know how he had survived this long without Yao Fai and even if Slade was an A-Hole, he was the only thing standing between Oliver and the certain death Fyers would order if he ever caught Oliver again.

Slade laughed at that but looked at Oliver in a way that told Oliver if Slade had been testing him, he passed.

"So what's our next step?" Oliver asked.

Slade answered, "Turning you into something that won't get us both killed." Gesturing towards some crates stacked to the side, Slade told him to choose a weapon.

Oliver stayed where he was and looked at Slade like he was crazy, which Oliver still figured he was. He asked, "We're starting now?" thinking he must have misunderstood.

Slade leaned forward and gave him a look that made it clear he expected to be obeyed without question while he and Oliver were teamed up.

Thinking it was probably best to do what Slade said, Oliver slowly got up and walked over to the crates. He opened up the first one, but it wasn't the assault rifle in the container that grabbed his attention, it was the mask laying right next to it. He held it up in a daze, snapping out of it when Slade spoke.

"That's mine," he said with a certain amount of pride.

Oliver was livid, so, still holding the mask, he got in Slade's face and accused, "You're the lunatic that tortured me!"

Slade didn't back down, (even angry the kid was hard to take seriously) and replied, "No, that was another guy."

"Bull!" Oliver yelled back.

Slade stayed calm and said, "This mask, it's my operational equivalent to a balaclava. My partner and I wore them to keep our identities classified during our missions."

Oliver had been lied to way too much to simply let it go at that. He was calmer but still upset as he told Slade he was lying, "Fyers told me that this nutcase is a prisoner on the island!"

Slade cocked his head and replied, "And Fyers is such a trustworthy individual? He lied to you. My partner and I came here to free Yuo Fai and get him off this island." There was a pause between the two men before Slade said, "We're ASIS. Australian Intelligence." Oliver still wasn't completely convinced but Slade took a step back. "Now," he said "You were going to find yourself a weapon. Have you considered a sword? I like swords." He nearly smiled at Oliver as he said that, then turned and walked back to his chair next to the fire.

Oliver turned back to the weapons cache, not quite as sure about this new partnership as he had been seeing as they were a couple hours in and he'd already thought Slade had been the one to torture him. He didn't trust everything Slade had told him but his instincts (which he really didn't listen to as often as he should) were telling him Slade was okay, and he figured that had to count for something


	3. Chapter 3

Author's Note: Please ignore the screwed up timeline here. I'm not following the episode exactly in that respect but the timeline as a whole evens out in later chapters.

True to his word, Slade began training Oliver during all the free time they had. The only times Oliver could catch a break was when they went to sleep, when Slade went hunting, or when he did a patrol around their plane, as he sometimes did to make sure Fyer's men weren't moving in too close. He thought he was catching on pretty quickly but Slade never failed to have him on his back in under a minute whenever they sparred. Although he was getting stronger, a solid three weeks of training was taking its toll on Oliver's patience. He didn't mind the hand-to-hand combat that much, even when he was losing, but the training with the bamboo poles mixed with Slade's sarcastic comments never failed to frustrate him. He was getting more and more irritated as the day wore on, so when Slade knocked him down, Oliver dropped his bamboo and decided that a good pace around the training field was probably a good idea before he honestly tried to kill his teacher, and he already knew that wasn't going to work.

Slade watched him silently for a moment before asking, "How did you survive here for six months?"

Oliver stopped pacing and sent a glare his way, trying his best to look intimidating.

Slade paid no attention and continued, " I know girl scouts that have more fight in them."

Oliver was pretty used to the sarcasm and could usually give it as well as he took it but he was annoyed and tired, so he only responded with, "Girl scouts now, Slade? Really?" He reached for one of the bamboo poles Slade was holding but Slade quickly smacked his hand away with it. Oliver yelled in pain and clenched his fist, "What the hell!?"

Slade was once again serious, "Listen kid, we have _ten days_ until the supply plane lands. Ten days to turn you into at least half a soldier."

Oliver still had his teeth clenched, not ready to forgive him so easily.

Slade looked him right in the eye as he quietly said, "So start taking it seriously."

Oliver stayed silent as Slade handed him one of the bamboo poles he was holding but as soon as he grasped it he quickly swung it at Slade as hard as he could but just like every time before, Slade blocked, spun, grabbed Oliver's pole, and had him disarmed and on the ground. Oliver was tempted to just stay lying in the grass since it was a lot less painful than trying to stay on his feet. His anger won out though, so he pulled himself back up and turned to Slade, asking "What is the point of this?! These soldiers don't carry bamboo, they have guns!" Oliver knew by the look on Slade's face that it was probably a good time to stop talking, but he couldn't help himself. This was almost a month's worth of frustration that he needed to let out, so he continued yelling, "So what am I supposed to do if one of them jams a gun in my face, huh? Threaten 'em with my stick?!"

Slade waited for Oliver to finish before stepping close to him and holding the handle of his handgun out to him as he said, "Jam this in my face."

Oliver stared at him, not sure if this was yet another test. He opened his mouth but didn't know what to say so he stayed silent, still not taking the gun.

Slade's patience was running out, he nudged Oliver with the gun handle and roughly told him, "Do it!" Oliver was still weary but took the gun. He looked at Slade a second longer before pointing the gun straight at his head. Before he could blink Slade twisted around, threw Oliver on the ground, and had the gun back in his own hand, pointing it at Oliver. Oliver rolled over to his back and sat up with his hands above his head as he said, "I give up. I give up."

Slade frowned and reached down, grabbing Oliver's collar and roughly hauling him to his feet. He pointed the gun at Oliver's chest and shouted, "There is no giving up to these guys! No crying or buying your way out of it!" Here he paused and moved the gun to point at Oliver's head. Seeing he had the kid's full attention, he continued in a low voice, "You have two choices. Escape...or die. So choose." O

liver glowered at him, he could see that Slade's finger was resting on the trigger of the gun currently pointing at Oliver's forehead, yet once again he felt no fear of him, his voice was even as he replied, "Escape."

Slade looked like he was seriously trying to regain his patience as he said, "Then let me show you how not to die." He shoved Oliver back, keeping eye contact with him as he did so. Finally, he holstered his gun and turned, walking back to where the bamboo poles were lying in the grass. Picking them up, he tossed one to Oliver and both got back into fighting stances before Oliver charged, trying to remember all the tips and tricks Slade had taught him so far.

* * *

By the end of their last training session, the progress Oliver had made was evident, even managing to get a few good hits in on Slade almost every session. This had earned him a smile and a "Nice job" which probably wouldn't have meant much coming from anyone else but Slade was just starting to warm up to him and treat him as something other than a nuisance so Oliver was feeling pretty good by the time Slade called it quits and he was allowed to go back to the plane.

Oliver followed along behind Slade, feeling more relaxed than he had since landing on this miserable island. It was the first time he could remember that he didn't have to watch his own back, knowing that if there were any danger close by, Slade would be aware of it long before Oliver was. He also didn't know why, but he already trusted Slade to protect him. It was strange, if he thought about it, how much trust he actually put in Slade considering he was the one who had a gun in Oliver's face mere hours ago. He couldn't explain it but he felt comfortable around him, and while it was too early to count Slade as a friend, he was definitely more familiar with him than he was with Yuo Fai. That made sense, he thought, considering Slade and him had been living and training together for almost a month now. They were getting to the point where they could read each others facial expressions and body language, communicating almost as well as if they were speaking.

Oliver smiled when he thought about that, remembering how he seemed to be perpetually confused while he was teamed up with Yao Fai. Oliver knew that if everything went according to plan, he and Slade would be going their separate ways in a couple days at most. He didn't know why, but that realization didn't make him as happy as he thought it would.

Just then, Slade glanced over his shoulder, calling to Oliver, "What are you doing back there? Stop lagging before I leave you in this God-forsaken jungle."

Oliver shook himself out of his thoughts, not noticing how far behind he'd fallen. He moved into a jog and fell back into step behind Slade, resolving to save his deep thinking for his trip home the next day.


	4. Chapter 4

They arrived back at the plane and Oliver was about to go collapse on his cot when he saw Slade had pulled out some pictures and maps and had them laid out across a crate, where he was intently studying them. Oliver's curiosity beat out his fatigue and he walked over, looking over Slade's shoulder.

Slade acknowledged his presence without looking up, simply stating, "Lian Yu."

Oliver was pleased to realize he knew what that meant, telling him, "It's the name of the island, I know." Slade looked at him with an indecipherable expression, so Oliver continued, "It's Mandarin for purgatory."

Slade nodded his head, "Yes. Wonderful."

Surprisingly, there was none of the usual sarcasm in response. Oliver thought about asking him if that was a sincere compliment but didn't want to push his luck, so instead he switched to another question. Pointing at an aerial photo he asked, "That the airstrip?"

Slade responded, "ASIS took satellite images of the whole island." He pointed to a clearing in the middle of the jungle in one of the photos and said, "This is Fyer's main camp where I was held for almost a year."

The only thing Oliver heard was Fyer's main camp, he interrupted Slade and asked, "Do you think that's where Yao Fai is now? Because maybe we could get a message to him, tell him we found a way off this island." Oliver was still confused by Yao Fai's actions but it didn't change the fact that he had saved Oliver's life numerous times, and Oliver Queen may be a lot of things but disloyal wasn't one of them, at least not anymore. He had no intention of leaving Yao Fai in this hell hole when there was a way to escape.

Slade looked mildly annoyed as he said quietly, "Forget about him."

Oliver didn't understand, he thought Slade would have been just as eager to save Yuo Fai since that had been his original mission.

Slade ignored the look Oliver was giving him and carried on with the mission outline. "This is the airstrip," he said, pointing at a particular place on a photo. He walked around the crate and picked up some other papers saying, "And these infrared images show at least ten soldiers guarding the perimeter at any given time."

Trying to lighten the mood and seeing a chance to get back at Slade for the girl scout comment, Oliver quipped, "Too many of them for ya?"

Slade didn't miss a beat, "No," he replied, watching as Oliver's grin disappeared, "My problem is the guy here, in the tower." Pointing at a photo he explained, "That is a PATC, Portable Air Traffic Control tower. The U.S. set these up in disaster zones, like Thailand after the tsunami."

Oliver wasn't getting it, he asked, "So what's the problem?" Slade answered, "The glass is bullet-proof. I can't take out the tower guard with my sniper rifle and if he suspects anything is wrong, he'll radio Fyers and we're canceled." Here he stopped and looked at Oliver, who was still studying the photo. He looked up as Slade said, "It'll be up to you to take him out. Up close and personal." Slade waited until Oliver faced him then asked, "Are you ready for that?"

Oliver was silent a moment, then, not quite looking Slade in the eye, asked, "...Do you think I'm ready?" He realized right then that he honestly wanted to know what Slade thought of him, if he really thought Oliver was good enough to fight alongside him. He also realized that, more than Slade's opinion, he wanted his approval.

Slade, on the other hand, was being his stoic self and responded, "What I think is that there's only one supply plane every three months. We leave tomorrow or we die soon afterwards." He paused, then said "I pick leaving."

Oliver quickly nodded his head, not trusting himself to speak quite yet. It was one thing training for taking the airstrip, it was quite another to have to face the fact that he had to kill somebody on purpose for the first time, that his and Slade's lives depended on it.

As if he knew what thoughts were going through Oliver's head, Slade's expression softened a bit as he said, "Go get some sleep. We leave at 0600."

Oliver nodded again and turned, walking towards his cot while Slade double checked the supplies then went to his own cot on the opposite side of the plane. Oliver sat down and pulled out his picture of Laural, hoping that he would soon get the chance to tell her how sorry he was for...everything. He looked over at the sound of Slade's voice.

"Don't worry, you'll be back with your girlfriend soon enough."

Oliver looked back at the picture before putting it back in his pocket and lying down, pulling his sleeping bag over him as he did so. Slade was doing the same thing on the other side of their shelter and despite the upcoming events, both were soon asleep.

Oliver jumped awake when Slade shook him the next morning, eyes wide and breathing rapid from the nightmare he'd been having.

Slade smiled, "Rise and shine." Oliver looked up at him and Slade lightly frowned, noticing Oliver's demeanor. Hand still on Oliver's shoulder, he asked, "You alright?"

Oliver was beginning to calm down and get his bearings again, he nodded and tried to smile but didn't think he quite pulled it off.

Slade also nodded understandingly and gave his shoulder a firm squeeze before walking over to where their supplies were stacked near the door of the shelter.

Oliver slowly got up and then walked towards the door, catching the backpacks Slade tossed to him. He watched quietly as Slade picked up his mask and stared at it for a few moments before letting it fall back into the crate and, closing the top, walked out the door with a determined, "Come on. We're moving out." Oliver looked towards the crate but followed after Slade.


	5. Chapter 5

Oliver thought that three weeks of training had given him more endurance but halfway to the airstrip, he was exhausted, trying not to lag too far behind but far too tired to stay right behind Slade. After they had left the field where their plane was they had to go through the jungle, using their machetes to chop away branches and vines, and cross numerous creeks, some bordering on the size, if not the depth, of rivers. Slade may have been used to the terrain but Oliver was seriously beginning to rethink this whole trip. They stayed pretty silent as they walked, Oliver was too preoccupied with the coming events to even think of a sarcastic remark and Slade seemed perfectly fine with not speaking, aside from the occasional direction to Oliver. They were in enemy territory by now anyways and as much silence as possible was required from that point on.

Finally, Slade held up his hand in a stop motion. Oliver was hopeful about resting but in just a minute Slade was on the move again. Oliver, completely out of breath, asked him, "Can we...uh...can we rest for a second?"

Slade, still walking, replied, "We can rest on the plane."

Oliver rolled his eyes but started after Slade, walking down a small embankment and trying to keep his feet under him. He stumbled a bit and side-stepped to try and keep his balance. He heard the audible click before he felt the firmness of metal under his foot.

Slade stopped and slowly turned around, looking where Oliver had stepped.

Oliver felt sick to his stomach, "Oh God..."

Slade dropped his rifle and walked closer, urgently telling Oliver not to move.

Oliver figured he knew the answer to this questiion but asked anyways, "Is it a mine?"

Slade stepped within a few yards of Oliver and held up his hand, trying to calm him down. Seeing that Oliver seemed steady, he dropped down on his stomach by Oliver's boot and wiped some dirt away. Seeing what was underneath, he stopped and sat back dejectedly, "...Yeah."

All Oliver could think to say was, "The soldiers mined the island?!"

Slade moved his hand back to the mine, sweeping more dirt away from the side of it. Not really sure how this would help but hoping to somehow distract Oliver, he replied, "No, it's probably Japanese, left over from World War Two. Still active." He couldn't help himself, "Impressive."

Oliver didn't care much for a history lesson right then but he knew what Slade was trying to do so he tried to calm down for his sake. He asked with a sigh, "Can you disarm it?"

Slade got back to his feet and responded, "Without disarming you?" Slade knew that wasn't the best thing he could have said but, not that he'd ever show it, he was a bit freaked out too and sarcasm was his fallback for everything. The look Oliver sent him showed Slade that he was not amused in the slightest.

Oliver's legs were beginning to cramp up from all the walking and he was wondering how long he could hold this position.

Slade heard the voices before Oliver did and looked out towards the jungle behind him. "Soldiers," he said.

Oliver looked back and saw some men in uniforms and balaclavas making their way towards them. Thankfully, they hadn't yet noticed the two men but would be almost on top of them in just a few seconds.

Slade was shifting his feet, he didn't want to leave Oliver there but he also couldn't wait around to be captured. Suddenly, he thought of a plan, just as Oliver turned to look at him. He could see the panic in the kid's eyes and hear it in his voice as he said, "They're gonna see us." Slade shook his head, knowing what he had to do and also knowing he didn't have time to explain it to Oliver. He grabbed the packs off Oliver's back and said, "No, they're going to see you." He saw the disbelief on Queen's face and knew he thought Slade was abandoning him, but he would make it up to him in a moment. He dashed behind some bushes just as the soldiers noticed Oliver standing there.

Oliver watched Slade disappear and pulled out the balaclava he had in his pocket, putting it on before the soldiers could see his face and hoping to somehow use it to escape, after they got him off the mine, of course.

The soldiers surrounded him with the leader standing directly in front of Oliver. He asked, "What are you doing so far from camp?"

Oliver tried to play it off, "I got separated from my unit."

The man looked at him for a moment before saying, "Come with us."

Oliver realized that none of them had noticed he was standing on a land mine, "Uh, I can't. Um...kinda having a bad day." The soldiers all looked down, Oliver closed his eyes and prayed for some miracle to get him out of this situation.

Just then, Slade jumped out from behind the bushes directly to Oliver's front. Oliver had just enough time to crouch, cover his head, and wonder how he hadn't even known Slade was still there before all the soldiers were dead and it was just him and Slade once again. One of the soldiers had fallen right in front of Oliver's feet, Slade crouched down and inspected the body.

Oliver watched Slade, not liking the look on Slade's face as he glanced up. "Be still," he said before launching himself and the dead body onto the land mine, knocking Oliver's boot off in the process. They both sat there for a minute, still tense and expecting something to happen. When nothing did, Slade slowly got to his feet and stepped over the body to where Oliver was still sitting on the ground.

Oliver looked up at him, "Thanks." He didn't mean just for getting him off the mine but also for not abandoning him, for risking his own life to save Oliver's.

Slade understood and simply held out his hand, pulling Oliver back to his feet. They grabbed the equipment from behind the bushes and once again were on their way, both being careful where they walked and Oliver staying in Slade's footsteps as much as possible.


	6. Chapter 6

Oliver was more than ready to stop when Slade finally chose a camp site for the night. He was tired enough to fall asleep right then and there but when Slade told him to grab some wood for a fire, Oliver figured it was the least he could do seeing it was because of Slade he wasn't blown to smithereens. With this in mind, Oliver not only found the wood but set right to work trying to start a fire the way he'd seen it done on tv. He began furiously rubbing two sticks together while Slade sat down opposite him and began taking apart his rifle, wiping down the pieces with a rag as he did so.

After about two hours of of this, Oliver's arm muscles felt like jelly and he was more frustrated that he'd ever been in his life but still he continued.

Slade looked up from cleaning his rifle to helpfully point out, "Obviously you were never a boy scout."

Oliver didn't miss a beat, "Yeah? What tipped ya off?" He was so focused on starting the fire that he missed Slade's smile at his sarcasm.

Slade said, "You better hurry, the wolves come out at night."

Oliver stopped rubbing the sticks and looked up at Slade's words, trying to see if he was serious, "There are wolves out here?"

Slade just looked at him so Oliver continued, "Right, of course there are. Because what would the worst place on earth be without wolves?" He went back to his work and it was silent for a few more moments before Slade, smirking but keeping his voice serious, added, "The only thing that will keep them out is fire."

"Well, you're welcome to help!" Oliver snapped back, finally looking up. As he did, he saw the smirk on Slade's face as he pulled a lighter out of his pocket and proceeded to light up Oliver's stick pile. Oliver watched, out of breath, trying to resist the urge to throw one of the now burning sticks at Slade. "Seriously?" he asked as Slade slid the lighter back into his pocket, "I've been working at this for two hours!"

Slade smiled again, "I know, I was watching. Thank you for the entertainment." If looks could kill, Slade would've been dead right there. He couldn't help messing with the kid, though. He hadn't had fun or joked around with someone since Billy had betrayed him and joined Fyers about a year ago. Also, Billy was the senior operative in the partnership so usually it was him messing around with Slade. As far as Slade was concerned, partners by necessity or not, Oliver was still the junior "operative" and Slade was going to make sure he didn't forget it. He went back to cleaning his rifle and Oliver relaxed against the log he had dragged over next to the fire.

Finally, Slade stood up, telling Oliver that he was going to do a quick patrol and with a "be careful" he disappeared into the dark.

Presently, Oliver pulled the picture of Laural out of his pocket and looked at her beautiful face, thinking once again how badly he screwed up.

Slade's voice pulled him out of his reverie, "You're going to wear that picture out just by looking at it." He took his seat across from Oliver, laying his rifle across his legs. Staring at the fire he went on, "Don't worry, she'll be waiting with flowers when you get back."

Oliver glanced again at the picture before looking back at Slade, "I doubt it. You remember how I told you I was shipwrecked here?"

Slade didn't move but he met Oliver's eyes, telling him silently to continue, which Oliver did, "Her sister was with me when the boat went down." He didn't know why he was telling Slade this, except that maybe he did consider him a friend. Actually, if he were being honest, he had considered Slade a friend for awhile now, even though they hadn't known each other long. Oliver still couldn't name the exact relationship him and Slade had, but he did feel comfortable sharing his personal story with the guy, so yeah, he figured, they were at least friends.

Slade had his trademark almost-smirk on his face as he said, "That's funny. Never took you as being the bad boy. You seem to lack the spark."

Oliver replied, "That's why I've gotta get home."

Slade tipped his head back, he didn't understand.

Oliver clarified "To make this right."

Slade leaned forward and said, "If you think you can sleep with your girlfriend's sister and still make this right, you're dumber than I thought." He waited for Oliver to look at him before he added, "And believe me when I tell you, that is saying something." He sat back and waited for Oliver's response.

Oliver said, "You don't really strike me as the type of guy who accepts apologies, so..."

That caught Slade off-guard, he replied in a low voice, "Everyone is in this life for themselves."

Oliver knew from Slade's tone that he shouldn't push it, but for once he had Slade on defense. Sarcastically he asked, "You learn that at Australian spy school?"

"No," Slade said, looking away, "I learned that here." He was silent before he suddenly asked, "You remember I told you I had a partner?"

Oliver nodded, surprised Slade was telling him something about himself. Slade, on the other hand, didn't know what possessed him to share personal info with Oliver, but he was telling himself that he was trying to give the kid some advice. He continued, "You remember the guy that tortured you?"

Slade waited for Oliver's reaction, not really surprised when Oliver disbelievingly asked, "That freak show was your partner?"

Slade told him, "His name is Billy Wintergreen." Oliver was still trying to take in this information so Slade continued, "Our mission was to exfiltrate Yao Fai and find out why Fyers and his men were so interested in him. Then our bird got shot out of the sky before we even saw the airstrip."

Oliver realized what he was saying and guessed, "That's where I found you."

Slade nodded before moving on with his story, "Fyers took us prisoner, asked if we would join him and his men." Here Slade's face showed his disgust as he said, "Billy accepted Fyers' invitation." He cast his eyes back down to the ground and said, "I declined."

Oliver could see that Slade was upset and was willing to drop it but Slade started talking again, "He was the godfather to my son, Joe."He stood up and stepped around the fire so he was face-to-face with Oliver and then went on, "And yet, he turned his back on me without even thinking twice about it."

Oliver didn't know what to say, but it didn't matter.

Slade repeated, "Everybody is in this life for _themselves."_ With that, he picked up his rifle and walked past Oliver back into the night.

Oliver watched him go; it wasn't often that Slade showed his emotions so it was clear just how badly his old partner had hurt him. It also explained why he seemed to have so many walls up around Oliver, although he had seemed to loosen up a lot since they first met. Oliver knew it was no use going after him right now, he'd never be able to find him and probably end up getting killed in the process. As he thought about what Slade had just revealed, he felt anger growing inside him. Not at Slade but at Wintergreen for betraying Slade, abandoning him with Fyers. The more he thought about Slade being held in that camp for a year, the angrier he got until it finally hit him: At some point during their messed up partnership Slade had become important to him. At once he knew what he had to do. He put more wood on the fire and settled in, waiting for Slade to get back.


	7. Chapter 7

Oliver had almost dosed off by the time Slade returned. He waited until Slade sat down before moving to sit next to him. Neither men said anything for a moment, but finally Oliver started talking, "I'm sorry...about what happened with your partner."

Slade shrugged, "Not your fault."

Oliver watched him before saying, "Not everyone is in this life for themselves. You taught me that. You didn't have to put that much time and effort into training me, but...you did."

Slade shook his head, "I need you to be able to take the airstrip."

Oliver scoffed, "You're telling me that had I not come along, you wouldn't have found any other way off this island?"

Slade stayed silent, proving Oliver's point, "That's what I thought. Look, I wasn't a loyal guy before; I betrayed a lot of people back home,"

Slade shot him a look and Oliver held up his hands as Slade impatiently asked, "Is there a point to this or are you just giving me your life story for the hell of it?."

Oliver half-smiled and said, "The point is,I'm not like that anymore because of you. You taught me what loyalty really meant when you rolled across that land mine and saved my life." Oliver paused and waited for Slade to look at him before saying, "I promise you, I would _never _do anything to lose the trust you put in me." He smirked and, nudging Slade's shoulder with his own, said, "Like it or not we're friends now. No use denying it."

Slade mock-rolled his eyes as he remarked, "Heaven help me." He sent Oliver a sincere smile though and got one in return. Slade wasn't completely sure he wanted to let Oliver in though, he couldn't handle another situation like what happened with Billy. While these thoughts were running through Slade's mind, he felt Oliver shift closer and lean part of his weight against his shoulder. Feeling the sudden warmth and companionship that he hadn't had in a year, Slade decided maybe it wasn't a bad idea, having a friend.

* * *

They stayed at their campsite for about an hour and a half. Oliver had fallen asleep against Slade soon after their talk, not even the suspense of the coming events were enough to keep him awake.

Slade, on the other hand, stayed up. He told himself he had to keep watch but he had too many thoughts running through his mind to fall asleep even if he tried. He glanced down at the kid asleep next to him, marveling at how he could sleep so peacefully despite their current situation and hoping that Oliver could keep some of that innocence after leaving this place. If everything worked out, he would be back to civilian life within a week and could hopefully put this experience behind him.

As for Slade, he knew the experiences on the island had permanently changed him, he wasn't even sure he could go back to the life he used to have. Shaking his head to rid himself of these thoughts, he lightly nudged Oliver with his shoulder, waiting until he knew the kid was coherent before speaking, "Time to move out. The airstrip is just over this next ridge."

Oliver nodded and got up, moving to pick up his packs while Slade grabbed his rifle. After scooping some dirt onto the dying embers of their fire, they began silently making their way towards their objective.

* * *

Finally, they broke through some trees and arrived at the edge of the airstrip, making sure to stay out of the way of the spotlights. Oliver dropped his backpacks behind some bushes and followed Slade to crouch behind some crates a couple hundred yards away from the control tower.

Slade pointed at the guard they could see through the window as he said, "If you let him radio camp, we're done." He reached behind him and pulled out his machete, handing it to Oliver.

Oliver grasped it, taking a deep breath before asking, "What about the others?"

Slade replied with a smirk, "You worry about your one...I'll worry about my ten."

Oliver nodded and gave him one more look before jogging closer to the control tower.

Slade watched him go then picked up his sniper rifle and set up in his position with a clear site of Oliver and the control tower.

Oliver stopped behind a HMMVW when he got close enough to hear the radios attached to the utility belts of the soldier guarding the airstrip. He pulled down his balaclava and held his machete, watching as one of the soldiers walked right in front of his hiding place. As he watched, the man suddenly crumpled on the ground, hit by one of Slade's rounds right to his heart. Oliver took the opportunity to move closer and pressed himself against the side of a tent set up near the tower.

Two more soldiers walked by him and just like the one before, both crumpled two the ground, dead.

Oliver got up, preparing to make his run to the tower steps. As soon as he stepped out of hiding he came face-to-face with an armed soldier. The man had just raised his rifle to Oliver's chest when one of Slade's rounds went whizzing past, going right through the man's body armor and through his heart, killing him before he could get his finger on the trigger.

Oliver quickly hid behind some supplies stacked up near the base of the tower, watching as Slade took our the two guards nearest him. As soon as it was clear, he ran up the stairs and paused at the door, looking in carefully. The man inside was sitting with his back to the door, Oliver quietly opened it and crept in behind the man, his machete out and ready. Just as he got close, the man noticed him and jumped up. Oliver took a swing at him but the man quickly ducked and punched Oliver in the face, causing him to drop the machete. He pointed a gun at Oliver so Oliver tried to disarm him the way he'd seen Slade do it.

Unfortunately, the man had little trouble fighting him off and shoved him into a table.

Oliver slowly turned around, seeing the gun once again pointed at him.

The man was looking at him disdainfully, he slowly reached over and grabbed the radio, still keeping his gun trained on Oliver. He had it half way to his mouth when a machete went through his chest from behind. The man gasped and fell to the ground, revealing Slade standing behind him.

Slade made sure the man was dead then turned to Oliver and smirked, "One job to do and you manage to screw up even that." He wasn't serious though, he thought the kid had been doing pretty well considering he had been trained for only three weeks. Slade reached down and put the radio back on its hook and then told Oliver, "I'm gonna go make sure that everything is clear. Stay here. Keep the door locked. Do not let anybody in except for me. You got that?"

Oliver nodded, "Yeah."

Slade took a step forward and reached down, picking up the discarded gun of the dead soldier. He straightened up and handed it to Oliver, "Here, keep this. Try not to shoot yourself by mistake." Then he turned and was out the door, shutting it behind himself.

Oliver rolled his eyes and set the gun on the counter next to him.


	8. Chapter 8

A/N: Sorry it took awhile to update! School does that haha

Oliver looked around at the room he was in, observing the computers and switches before his eyes finally rested on a phone. He walked over to it, contemplating what he was about to do. He picked up the phone and held it to his ear, pausing when he heard the dial tone. Slowly, he typed in the number he knew by heart, stilling when he heard the dial tone change to ringing.

Suddenly, Laural picked up, "Hello?"

Oliver put a hand over his mouth to keep from gasping.

Laural sounded confused, "Hello? Is anybody there?"

Listening to her voice, Oliver completely forgot where he was, only focused on listening to the only link he had to his old life. He was about to say something when the phone was abruptly ripped out of his hand. He turned to find Slade standing there, not at all happy.

"Have you lost your mind?" he asked, "They might be monitoring the calls."

Oliver was still trying to get ahold of his emotions when a voice came over the radio, "Island tower, this is Skyhawk eight zero one Foxtrot. We are seven hundred kilometers southeast of your position. ETA, three hours and twenty two minutes, over."

Slade put the radio to his mouth and replied, "Island tower, Skyhawk eight zero one Foxtrot, acknowledged." He and Oliver stared at each other, not quite believing they'd made it this far. Not hearing anything, Slade repeated his message.

They finally got an answer, Skyhawk radioed back and said, "Of all creatures that breathe and move upon the earth."

Slade frowned, trying to figure out how to respond. He should have known they would have a safety net in place so the plane couldn't be hijacked.

Oliver was confused, "What is that?"

Slade answered, "It's a challenge code, they're trying to verify our identity." Trying to buy some time, he radioed back, "Skyhawk eight zero one Foxtrot, please repeat."

Skyhawk repeated the challenge code, "Of all creatures that breathe and move upon the earth."

Just then, it hit Oliver why that sounded familiar. He looked up, grabbing Slade's wrist, "Wait. Wait, I know this! They picked the one book I read in college!"

Slade was starting to think the kid had lost it, "What the hell are you talking about?"

Oliver was smiling by this time as he explained, "It's a quote from The Odyssey." He closed his eyes, trying to remember the rest of it. "Um...of all creatures that breathe and move upon the earth nothing...nothing is born that is weaker than man."

Slade was still staring at him like he was crazy, "Are you sure about this? Because if you're wrong this plane will turn around and-"

Oliver interrupted him, "Yes! I'm positive. Nothing is born that is weaker than man. Say it."

He kept eye contact with Slade as Slade raised the radio to his mouth again. He was just about to press the button when Oliver suddenly grabbed his wrist again, "Wait! Wait wait, sorry! Bred, not born. Nothing is bred that is weaker than man. Say it."

He let go of Slade's wrist and Slade put the radio back to his mouth. He was even less sure about this now but he didn't really have a choice. If he stayed silent, the plane would never land. He pressed the button and, still staring at Oliver, said, "Nothing is bred that is weaker than man." He released the button and heard Skyhawk come back on the radio, "Roger that, see you in a few hours. Out."

Oliver grinned and Slade let out the breath he didn't realize he'd been holding. "The Odyssey, huh?" he asked.

Oliver laughed, "Yeah, it's uh, well, it's a story about a guy trying to get home, so..."

Slade hung the radio up again and turned back to Oliver, "Well, after a few days at Langston air base, you'll be on your way home."

He started to walk away when Oliver said, "You sound like you're not coming with me."

Slade looked at him, "I'll be coming with you."

The relief Oliver felt at Slade's words was short-lived as he continued, "After I radio in an air-strike on this location. I'm going to send Fyers and all his men straight back to Hell." He started walking again but stopped and looked back at Oliver's firm, "Wait."

Oliver told him, "You can't blow up the island. Yao Fai is still out there."

Slade walked back to where Oliver was standing as he said, "He is not my concern."

The implied "You are" was left unsaid but Oliver didn't pick up on it. He replied, "Really? He's the only reason you came here. Rescuing him was _your _mission!"

Slade tried not to lose his temper as he said, "Well, the mission has changed. Edward Fyers is a mercenary and he is not on this island by mistake. He has plans for Lian Yu and they involve Yao Fai. Whatever they are, they must end." By now both men were mere inches away from each other, regarding each other silently.

Slade was hoping Oliver would come to his senses but Oliver quietly said, "Yao Fai saved my life."

Slade nodded but said, "That is your debt to repay. Not mine." He tried to ignore the disappointment in Oliver's eyes as he brushed by Slade, heading for the door.

Slade caught his arm but Oliver jerked out of the hold. Slade asked, "Where are you going?"

Oliver said, "All my life, I've only cared about myself. I took my family for granted, my friends. And I'm not gonna be that person anymore. I can't leave Yao Fai here to die. I won't."

Slade knew the kid was disappointed in him but he hadn't come this far just to risk his only chance to get off the island. He also had thought Oliver would stick by his side so they could get off this island _together._ What about all that talk about loyalty and trust just the night before? He knew Yao Fai had played a large part in keeping Oliver alive but what about himself? He had trained Oliver, more than that, he opened up to Oliver, yet Oliver was still choosing Yao Fai over him. He knew it wasn't the same thing, but he was getting deja vu of Billy choosing to side with Fyers. In a low voice he told Oliver, "The plane leaves in three hours. If you and your _friend_ are not on it, I am going to leave without you."

Oliver could hear the bitterness in his voice and knew that Slade felt Oliver was betraying him. They had lived and trained together enough that they could read each other without a word being said. Oliver meant what he said though, he still felt loyalty to Yao Fai. He had to do this. He turned once again to walk out the door but paused, looking in Slade's direction he said, "If I don't make it back in time and you get out of here...I want you to call my family...call my family."

Slade agreed, "Sure, kid."

Oliver walked out the door and took off through the jungle in the direction of Fyers' camp.

Slade watched him go, trying to untangle his emotions and wondering when it was he actually became attached to the kid. Then it hit him, he _did _think of Oliver as a friend and if he left without him, well, he was no better than Billy. He couldn't leave the kid out in this jungle to die. Besides, he thought to himself, he had spent way too much time and effort on the kid to have him get killed now. He couldn't go after him yet, though. He had to at least make sure the plane landed and give them some chance of escaping. He was still hoping that Oliver would show up with Yao Fai and he wouldn't need to go after the kid, but that was looking less likely by the minute.


	9. Chapter 9

Oliver finally made it through to Fyers' camp and was darting between the tents, trying to stay behind cover as much as possible. After several close calls with the guards, he eventually saw Yao Fai walking into a tent close to where he was hiding. Running to the back side of the tent, he stepped through, trying to be as sneaky as possible.

Yao Fai was in disbelief as he caught sight of Oliver, "How did you-"

Oliver interrupted him, "Let's go, I'll explain on the way."

Yao Fai shook his head, "You should never have come back here!"

Oliver was confused as to why they weren't running yet but tried to explain, "I found Slade Wilson, he has a way off the island." Speaking of Slade, Oliver was really beginning to wish he were here with him, Yao Fai didn't seem to be in any hurry to leave and Oliver was getting nervous. "We have to go, right now," he said.

Yao Fai shook his head, saying adamently, "No, no."

Oliver couldn't believe what he was hearing, "What do you mean, no? This is our one chance, what reason could you possibly have for staying here?"

Yao Fai replied, "Not what. Who." Oliver was trying to figure that out when Fryers walked into the tent.

Yao Fai looked at him then turned back towards Oliver and punched him, knocking him to the floor.

Fryers walked up and smiled down at him, "Ah Mr. Queen, I think it's past time you left this island. Permanently."

Just then the masked man, Billy Wintergreen, Oliver vaguely recalled, appeared over Fryers' shoulder, staring down at Oliver.

* * *

Back at the control tower, Skyhawk finally radioed in to let Slade know they were coming in for a landing.

Slade picked up the radio and spoke, "Skyhawk eight zero one Foxtrot, this is Island Tower, you are cleared to land." As soon as Skyhawk acknowledged, Slade looked at his watch. It had been about three hours since Oliver had taken off and he still wasn't back. Slade knew what he had to do.

* * *

Back at Fryers' camp, Oliver stood in a circle of soldiers, shoved in by Yao Fai himself.

Fyers stepped forward, asking, "Simply to satisfy my own curiosity, why aren't you already dead? I saw Yao Fai choke you to death."

Oliver glared at Yao Fai as he said, "Guess he's not as strong as he looks."

The other soldiers laughed as Fyers replied, "Yet still you return for him. So you're either a fool or is it possible you now think yourself a hero?"

Oliver stared at Fyers, "I'm not a hero."

Fryers chuckled, "No, of course not. It's not possible to be a hero when there's nobody worthy of saving."

Oliver directed his question to Yao Fai, "Is this what you want?" He didn't wait for a reply, he asked Fyers, "You want me to fight him again?"

Fyers condescendingly smiled, "Oh no, Mr. Queen. This is not a match, it's an execution."

Oliver looked at Yao Fai but he wouldn't look Oliver in the eyes. He stared at the ground as he said, "I'm sorry."

Oliver heard someone step up behind him and turned to see the masked man. Suddenly, an anger he didn't expect to feel welled up inside him. Not for himself, but for Slade and for what this man in front of him did. "Wintergreen, isn't it?" he asked, not having to try very hard to make his words venomous.

The man punched Oliver, but he didn't go all the way down. Oliver knew he was about to die but his life didn't flash before his eyes. He wasn't thinking of his family, his friends, or even Laural. He was thinking about how Slade tried to keep him at the airstrip. How he had only been trying to keep Oliver safe, had tried to tell him it wouldn't work to go back for Yao Fai. Oliver hadn't listened though. He had told Slade he'd stick with him, that they were friends, but when it came down to it, he'd chosen to go back to Yao Fai, who, ironically, had just betrayed Oliver himself.

Oliver straightened up and turned back to Wintergreen. He said, "I know all about you. I know you worked for the Australian government. And that you used to fight for your country. That you used to stand for something!"

The man lashed out at Oliver again, catching him in the stomach and knocking the wind out of him. He didn't stop there though, he kept punching Oliver until Oliver finally hit the ground. He pulled out his machete and cut Oliver's bindings off his wrists. As soon as Oliver got to his feet, Wintergreen had him back to his knees. He grabbed Oliver by his throat and Oliver knew this was the end.

Just then, some barrels next to a cargo truck behind the group exploded, causing the truck to go up in flames. Wintergreen dropped Oliver who ran behind some stacked up crates as soldiers started dropping to the ground around him. The ones that hadn't yet been shot ran towards the jungle, firing rounds at enemy they had yet to see. More barrels exploded, taking out several unlucky soldiers as they did so. The only one still standing in the clearing was Billy Wintergreen, not at all ruffled by the chaos. It was almost like he was waiting for something else.

As Oliver watched, Slade walked out from behind a tent, unsheathing his machete as he walked towards his old partner.

Billy spoke, "Slade. Come back to die?"

Slade rushed him, swinging his machete as he did so.

Wintergreen ducked and spun around, jabbing with his own machete.

The two fought, neither one giving up any ground, both landing good hits.

Slade managed to get the upper-hand for a moment, punching Billy and knocking him several feet away. They circled each other as Slade asked, "Was it so easy to betray me, Billy?"

They rushed each other again but this time it was Billy who came out on top, knocking Slade to his back in the mud.

Oliver moved a little ways from the crate, about to run out and at least distract Wintergreen from his fallen friend.

Slade waited until Billy was almost on top of him before jumping out of the way, slamming a punch to Wintergreen's stomach. As soon as Billy was off-balance, Slade pulled him closer and began punching him in the face. Finally, Wintergreen's head dropped to Slade's shoulder.

Slade shoved him back, Oliver could see him saying something to Wintergreen but it was in too low a tone for Oliver to hear.

In the next moment, Slade had stabbed his machete straight through Wintergreen's head. He let the body drop into the mud and stood there for a second longer, as if in a daze.

Oliver stood up and Slade finally noticed him. Just as he turned towards Oliver, there was a shot and Slade crumpled to the ground.

Oliver jumped and ran towards him, his heart in his throat. He grabbed an assault rifle laying on the ground and turned towards the shooter. Fyers, he noticed, right before he held down the trigger and sprayed rounds in his general direction. He didn't think he hit Fyers, but it was enough to make him duck behind a truck for cover. Oliver used that opportunity to reach down and haul Slade back to his feet. He looped one of his arms around Slade's waist and started moving back towards the jungle, rifle still in his other hand and trying to use as much of his body as possible to block Slade from the incoming rounds as they ran.

* * *

Once they had gotten far enough away, Oliver dropped the rifle and Slade moved his uninjured arm around Oliver's shoulders, leaning on him for support. He had lost a fair amount of blood by this time and was feeling the fatigue from the days events catching up to him.

They were a fairly safe distance from the camp when a soldier stepped out from some bushes, pistol pointed right at Slade. Before either Slade or the soldier could react, Oliver had grabbed the guy's arm, twisted behind him, elbowed him in the side as hard as he could and flipped the guy over, disarming him in the process. By the time the soldier realized what was happening, Oliver had the gun pointed at his head.

Slade didn't even try to hide his pride as he watched Oliver, waiting to see what he would do next. He may be a little angry at the kid, but he was still impressed by what Oliver had picked up from him.

Oliver clenched his teeth but knocked the guy out instead of shooting him. He heard the plane and both him and Slade watched as it flew off.

"There goes our ride," Slade remarked.

Oliver sighed, he couldn't even process what that meant right now. He stepped back to Slade's side and they continued on their way back to their plane. Thankfully, Slade had cause enough chaos in the camp that everyone was too preoccupied to chase after them. Oliver supposed Slade could probably walk on his own but at this point Oliver just needed to know he was okay, that he was alive. Every time he let his mind wander, he saw Slade getting shot and crumpling to the ground. For that split-second, Oliver had been sure he was dead.

Slade also didn't mind having Oliver's support for the long walk back to the plane. Not only was he about ready to pass out, but he was in pain and feeling the warmth of another person was somewhat comforting, even when that person was the reason he was in this predicament. He hadn't told Oliver yet but he was almost certain the round was still in arm and it would have to come out when they got back to the plane. He wasn't looking forward to the pain he knew was coming.


	10. Chapter 10

They finally arrived back at the plane and Oliver left Slade leaning against the wall while, per Slade's instructions, he moved his cot into the middle of the room where there was more light. He went back and helped Slade to sit down on the end of it. Oliver was already feeling sick to his stomach with nervousness, Slade had told him he had to dig the round out of his shoulder but Oliver wasn't sure he was going to be able to do this. He took the machete Slade had and tried to disinfect it the best he could but he honestly didn't think it made a difference.

He was about to begin when Slade stopped him, "Wait...there's a bit of rope in that bag over by your cot, grab it and tie my hands up."

Oliver just wanted to get this over with so he didn't question the reasoning behind this order. He fetched the rope and did as Slade said, binding his wrists tightly enough to hold him but not so tight as to cause Slade any more pain. He looked at Slade one more time and when he nodded, Oliver began digging for the bullet. He tried to block out the sound of Slade's screams and tried to hold back the nausea that was threatening to overcome him. Finally, he got the round out and bent over, willing the sick feeling to go away.

Slade was heavily breathing as he said, "I'm impressed. You didn't puke."

Oliver straightened up and replied, "I swallowed it," still sounding like he was going to throw up.

Slade nodded and said, "You can untie me now."

Oliver reached down and undid the knot, asking, "Why'd you want me to tie you up in the first place?"

Slade inspected his new wound as he answered, "A man in pain is unreliable. I was afraid I might kill you."

Oliver had come to stand directly in front of Slade, waiting to see if there was anything else he should be doing.

Slade wouldn't look him in the eye as he said, "Thanks."

Oliver shook his head as he stared across the room, thinking about how it should be him thanking Slade. The man had given up his only way off this island to come save Oliver's life..._again._ Even after Oliver chose his loyalty to Yao Fai over his loyalty to Slade, he had still come back for him. Oliver could feel the tension between them because of that decision and he hated it. He sat down on Slade's uninjured side, both men tense and silent. Oliver broke it, "I'm sorry."

Slade didn't say anything and still wasn't looking at him.

Oliver sighed and said, "I know you probably feel like I betrayed you and I completely understand that." There was still silence from Slade but Oliver could tell he was listening. Oliver continued, "You were right about Yao Fai. He's the one that turned me over to Fyers. I don't know why I chose him over you."

At that, Slade flinched, he had thought that to himself plenty but hearing it from Oliver himself made it worse, made it real. The same sense of betrayal he'd felt with Billy washed over him again.

Oliver glanced over when he felt Slade move and felt even worse when he realized how that must have sounded. He tried to fix it, "What I'm saying is, it was just blind trust. All I could think about was how I wouldn't even be alive if it weren't for Yao Fai. This is actually the second time he captured me for Fyers."

Slade looked over at him and Oliver clarified, "He also helped me escape that same time but I thought he was staying there because he didn't have a way off the island. I don't know what to think now."

Slade cast his eyes back down and Oliver tried to make eye contact again, finally reaching up and laying his hand on Slade's shoulder.

Slade looked back to Oliver at the contact. Once he knew he had Slade's attention, Oliver said, "It may not seem like it now, but I meant everything I said last night. I just didn't realize how much until you got shot...saving me." Had it really only been one day since they were making their way towards the airstrip? It felt like a lifetime. Oliver was the one to break eye contact this time, folding his hands in his lap as he went on, "When you hit the ground, that was the most scared I've been since...since I lost my dad. All I could think about was what had happened at the tower and how you would be on your way home if it wasn't for me. And the thought of being here alone, without my only friend...I was terrified." Oliver knew they'd only known each other for three weeks, but he also knew he would never have a better partner or a better friend, and that he was willing to do just about anything to make sure their partnership stayed strong.

They sat in silence while Slade gathered his thoughs but he eventually spoke, "Kid, I was pretty upset when you went after Yao Fai but if I didn't want you around anymore, I wouldn't have come back for you." He finally smiled at Oliver and in that one gesture he let Oliver know things were okay between them.

Just to be sure, Oliver asked, "So, we're good?"

Slade, smirking, replied sarcastically, "Yeah, still friends."

Oliver laughed and Slade looked at him strangely, "What?"

Oliver, still chuckling, said, "I'm trapped on an island and my only friend is named Wilson." He got up and started pacing the length of the plane as he asked, "What now?"

Slade went back to examining his arm as he replied, "Hopefully my fireworks show set Fyers back, maybe enough for those who hired him to call things off."

Oliver stopped pacing, "Hired him?"

Slade stood up and turned to look at Oliver, "Well, Fyers is a merc. He follows the money. So he's on this island on someones employ."

Oliver was at a loss, "What do we do?"

Slade walked up to him and answered, "We have to make sure neither one of us dies on this God-forsaken island."

Oliver reminded him, "I thought you said if we didn't get on the plane we weren't gonna make it."

Slade tipped his head back and regarded Oliver for a moment before stepping closer. "Well, that dumb kid that I trained, he would never have made it," he said. "You," he paused and smiled, his expression softening as he held out his hand.

Oliver smiled back and grasped his hand as Slade continued, "You might just have a chance."

Oliver nodded, knowing that if anyone could survive this, it would be the two of them.


	11. Chapter 11

It only took two days for the infection to set into Slade's arm. At first, he was only sore near the wound, but then he developed a fever and by the fourth day he couldn't move from his cot.

It was at that point that Oliver had moved his cot next to Slade's so he could better moniter his condition. Another thing that bothered him was Slade was so close to the door, if there was ever an intruder Slade would be the first target. Slade was practically passed out on his cot and Oliver couldn't move it without getting Slade up, which wasn't happening. Moving his cot on the other side of Slade closest to the door not only let Oliver keep an eye on him but also gave Oliver a clear line of site into the clearing beyond the plane. If worse came to worst, he could also better shield Slade from an attack at a moment's notice. Oh yeah, he thought to himself with some satisfaction, he was definitely catching on to the tactical side of this mess.

Oliver was trying everything he knew to help Slade but nothing seemed to be working. The biggest thing he was focused on right now was hydration, as Slade wouldn't last too much longer without it and his body was already failing without that added problem. Oliver walked over to where Slade was laying, carrying a cup of water. He didn't need any medical training to see Slade was getting worse; he was shivering and gasping, as if his breathing was also getting worse. That thought scared the hell out of Oliver and he quickly closed the gap and knelt next to Slade but he didn't realize Oliver was there.

Holding the cup in one hand, Oliver used the other to gently shake Slade's shoulder, "Hey, look at me. Drink this."

Slade could hardly hold his head up so Oliver held the cup to his mouth. Slade tried to swallow it but spit most of it back out. He turned his head to Oliver, "That tastes like dirt."

Oliver was still kneeling next to him with his hand on Slade's shoulder, "You gotta stay hydrated, okay?" He was trying to stay calm but he was getting really worried. Every day Slade was getting worse and the moments of clarity Slade had were getting fewer and farther between with his fever steadily climbing. The worst was when Slade was asleep, the fever causing him to have nightmares and, Oliver suspected, flashbacks. More than once Oliver had been sitting with Slade, listening quietly as he rambled about his son or trying to calm him down as Slade relived the day his partner left him to die. It was during one of these flashbacks that Slade revealed that Billy had tortured him during his one year stay in Fyers' camp. That made Oliver want to kill the guy all over again. It was bad enough when he was tortured by Wintergreen, but that was Slade's own partner!

At the moment, Slade was surprisingly coherent as he responded, "Hydration is not my problem. My problem is getting a bullet dug out of my arm with a cold blade."

Oliver leaned over him to reach the wounded arm, "Let me take a look."

Slade tried to be still and let Oliver inspect it but he knew it was bad as soon as Oliver pulled back the bandage, "Is it infected?"

Oliver just looked at him and Slade remarked, almost in a whisper, "Go figure."

The two stared at each other for a moment , despair evident in both before Oliver broke the silence, "Yeah," he replied, "Uh, I gotta stop that before it spreads." He stood up, grabbing a knife Slade kept in one of his numerous weapons caches.

Slade could see the kid was scared and to be honest, he was scared too. He tried to calm them both down with his usual fallback, sarcasm. "Well, when you swing by the drugstore for those antibiotics, you wanna get me a Maxim or maybe a copy of Sports Illustrated?" he tried to laugh but he was in too much pain and his throat felt like it was closing up.

Oliver turned to him and said, "Yao Fai had these...super herbs back in the cave that would heal anything. I'm gonna go get them." Oliver started walking towards the door. The last thing he wanted to do was leave his partner here helpless, but he knew nothing else was going to heal him.

Slade tried to stop him, "You're not gonna last an hour out there."

Oliver turned and said, "Well, I guess you better hope I get back in 45 minutes then." He walked out the door in the direction he remembered the cave being located. He knew this was going to be dangerous but he was not willing to sit by and watch his friend slowly die. He wouldn't last on that island without Slade anyway, he wasn't even sure he wanted to. Once Oliver crossed the field their plane was sitting in and entered the jungle, he tried to remember everything Slade had taught him so far, moving quickly but carefully through the vines, keeping sound to a minimum and watching out for booby traps and soldiers.

Slade watched him go before closing his eyes and praying for a miracle, hoping against hope that he'd taught the kid well enough that he would come back unharmed.


	12. Chapter 12

Oliver finally found the cave and rushed in, trying to find the bag where Yao Fai had kept the herbs. He started digging through a bag lying on the floor and had just found the herbs when he heard coughing coming from behind him. He quickly got to his feet and spun around, ready to attack. "Who's there?" He asked urgently.

A man about Oliver's age, bloody and beaten with his hands tied behind his back, crawled out from behind a pillar. "Help me," he said.

Oliver in shock, "Who are you?"

The man said, "My name is Hylan Duran, I'm an exchange student. I was on a fishing excursion with my class. We got lost then our boat caught fire. Some mechanic malfunction, we had to jump ship."

Oliver wasn't sure what to do, he wasn't even sure if this man was telling the truth. "When?" he asked.

"Two days ago," the man replied. "I thought I was gonna die." The man looked like he was about to cry.

Oliver quickly asked, "Where are the other students? Where's the boat's crew, huh?"

The man shook his head as he said, "I think I'm the only one who made it. I managed to get to shore, I thought I was lucky, but..."

"What?" Oliver asked, "Somebody found you? S-Soldiers or..."

The man started crying, "Yes! Yes, they had these masks on, they attacked me and beat me! They left me here! Who are they?"

Oliver didn't respond, he just kept staring at the man.

The man looked up again, "You can untie me at any point, by the way."

Oliver was still unsure, he glanced back at the exit, making sure they were the only two there.

The man was beginning to lose his patience, he shouted, "Please, I don't know when these men are coming back! You have to believe me! Untie me please!"

Oliver still didn't move and the man said, "What, you think these men planted me here? Some kind of trap or something?"

Oliver didn't know what to say, that was exactly what he was thinking, "Well, why did they tie you up like that and then just leave you? Huh? Why not just kill you?"

The man yelled, "They were going to! They got called away, some altercation somewhere else on the island! If they come back, they will kill both of us! Please, you have to believe me! Please!"

Oliver knew that was true, they would kill him if he were caught again. "Alright," he said, "Turn around."

The man did so, thanking Oliver repeatedly.

Oliver reached his machete towards the leather ties binding the man's hands but stopped right before his blade made contact. An image of Slade, wounded and defenseless, entered his mind. If he released this man, he would have to take him back to the plane; if what he said was true the guy would never survive by himself. But if he were dangerous, Oliver wouldn't be the only one paying the price. Slade was in no condition to fight and Oliver would be no match for someone with actual training. His partner's safety had to come first. He slowly withdrew his machete and stood up, saying, "I'm sorry...but I can't."

The man was in disbelief, "What? Why? Why not?"

Oliver began walking away but turned back for a moment, "Because I don't know you." He continued walking out as the man screamed behind him.

* * *

The whole way back to the plane, Oliver thought about the man. He couldn't help but picture himself in the man's situation; if Yao Fai and then Slade wouldn't have taken the time to help him, he would already be dead ten times over. This was different though, he told himself. If there was one lesson this island had taught him, it was that blind trust was one of the most dangerous things you could have. He wasn't about to take that chance when his only real friend was slowly dying.

Oliver got back to the plane and woke Slade up from the fever-induced sleep he was in, holding his head up with one hand and tipping the herbs down his throat. There was nothing else he could do but wait, so he took a seat against the side of Slade's cot and settled in. Presently, he noticed Slade seemed to be resting more comfortably, he had stopped shivering and sweat coated his face, indicating the fever had finally broken. In about an hour, he woke Slade up with another cup of herbs, happy and relieved to see he had the strength to sit up and take the cup himself.

Oliver sat next to him while Slade drank the contents of the cup, giving him a quick once-over to make sure he was getting better. It was obvious he was though, the fever was almost completely gone and while Slade was exhausted, he also had a clear mind once again.

Slade swallowed the mix then handed the cup back to Oliver, "That tastes like an ash tray, but it does the job." He looked at Oliver for a moment before saying, "I owe you one."

Oliver sent him a quick smile but he was still thinking about the man in the cave. Slade could tell something was wrong, "You didn't get into any trouble out there, did you?"

Oliver quickly shook himself out of his thoughts and looked over at Slade, "Hm?" Slade cocked his head at him and Oliver thought about telling him what happened. He decided against it though, not wanting Slade to have to worry about it while he was still sick. "No," he said, "Not a bit."

Slade nodded but he knew there was something Oliver wasn't telling him. He let it drop though, he'd bring it up to the kid when they had both rested up. He laid down again and closed his eyes, tiredness sweeping through his whole body. He could hear Oliver settle down in the bed he'd made next to Slade's cot and relaxed for the first time since Oliver had left the plane without him. He felt safe sleeping since Oliver was right there next to him and would be keeping watch like he had since Slade became sick. With that thought in mind, Slade drifted back into sleep.


	13. Chapter 13

The herbs and plenty of rest did the trick and Slade was up and about three days later.

Oliver was finally able to get some rest too, since he knew Slade was going to be okay. He had been up all night while the wound was infected, afraid of not being there if things took a turn for the worst. He was still on edge even after Slade drank the herbs so he continued to bed down next to Slade's cot and while he was able to grab some sleep during the night, he was frequently waking up to check Slade's condition and make sure he was continuing to heal.

It was a relief for both of them when Slade finally had his first "normal" day with no recurring symptoms afterward. Oliver didn't think he would ever say this, but he was actually relieved when Slade decided they should start training again. Of course, Oliver decided he must have been crazy to miss it when Slade pointed him to the pull-up bar hanging in their plane.

Oliver had never been one for working out, he'd never had to before. He was always popular in school because of his family's reputation so he got plenty of attention without being an athlete. Nonetheless he jumped up and grabbed the bar while Slade took a seat in the corner, telling Oliver he would keep count. Oliver pulled himself up once pretty easily, the second time was a little more difficult, the third he felt his arms burning, and he pulled himself up for the fourth time before his arms gave out and he dropped back to the ground. He heard a snort of laughter from the corner where Slade was sitting as he told Oliver that he got to four pull-ups.

Still sitting on the ground, Oliver responded, "Well, I'm more of a runner."

Slade got up and walked over to the bar, jumping up to grab it and easily doing the pull-ups.

Oliver got up, standing to the side and watching before asking, "Why the sudden desire to work out?"

Without pausing his workout Slade answered, "What else is there to do?"

Oliver was ready for that and said, "Well, we could try to think of another way off the island."

"There is no other way," Slade told him, "If there was, I would have found it."

Oliver didn't doubt that was true, especially since Slade had been on the island a year longer than Oliver had. The impatience leaked into Oliver's voice as he said, "We can't just sit here and wait for Fyers to come and kill us."

Slade finally dropped to the ground and, walking up to Oliver, said, "I did have one idea."

Oliver could see the look in Slade's eyes that told him this probably wouldn't go well, but he took the bait anyway, "What?"

Slade said, "If you go into the forest and gather as much bamboo as you can find..."

he paused and Oliver fell for it again as he asked, "Yeah?"

Slade grinned and said, "We could build ourselves a boat like they did on Gilligan's Island!"

Oliver was not amused but before he could respond he noticed an old radio sitting towards the back of the plane. He didn't know how he had missed it before but now he walked up, inspecting the different parts.

Slade glanced over at him, "That's broken, it got busted during the crash."

Oliver asked, "Well, did you try to get it to work?"

Slade answered dryly, "I'm better at pulling things apart."

Oliver went to the back where all the wires were located and explained, "My father was a pilot and he used to do his own maintenance."

Slade walked over and replied, "So you're hoping aircraft maintenance is genetic?"

Oliver rolled his eyes at Slade's smirk and tried to remind himself how much he'd missed their banter when he thought Slade was going die. With that in mind, he responded, "No, I used to help him and I liked it, then I got pretty good at it, so _maybe_ I can make the radio work."

Slade turned and walked back towards the pull-up bar as he told Oliver, "You should be training for the inevitable fight that's looming."

Oliver went back to tinkering with the wires as he replied with a smirk of his own, "I think I have a better chance of making the radio work."


	14. Chapter 14

A/N: This is the last chapter I have written...I'll wait until the new episode to write another. Trying to stick with the series but adding my own things to the episodes. Anyone have any ideas, let me know! Thanks! Also, a huge shout out to 8belles for giving me some great advice! I appreaciate it!

* * *

From then on, every waking moment that Oliver had to himself he spent with that radio. He would have spent even more time working except that Slade insisted training together for at least part of every day. The radio kept Oliver's mind off being trapped on an island with a bunch of maniacs that wanted to kill him and he really thought he could get it to work.

Slade, on the other hand, was getting more and more impatient with the kid. Even when they were training, he could see Oliver's mind wasn't really in it. He honestly thought the radio was a lost cause but he decided to keep playing along because Oliver had been right when he said they had nothing to lose by trying to fix it. It would be almost three months before the next plane landed and even then it would be much harder to take it.

Finally, they ran out of food from the last hunting trip so Slade woke up, grabbed some supplies, and set out with a variety of weapons to find something edible to bring back. When he arrived back at the plane carrying the large wild hog he had killed, he wasn't surprised to see Oliver back at the radio. Trying to get some sort of acknowledgment, he quipped, "I hope you like barbeque."

Oliver didn't even seem to hear him, as focused as he was on the wires of the radio.

Slade rolled his eyes and remarked sarcastically, "Well, don't fall all over yourself thanking me for spending six hours up a tree so you can eat." He vaguely realized that they were beginning to sound like an old married couple but decided not to dwell on that.

Oliver finally looked over, "What? Great, I'll eat later."

Slade watched as he turned back to the radio, continuing to do something with the wires. "You've been at that for days," he said with annoyance, "Give it a rest."

Not looking up, Oliver replied, "That's because I can do this."

Slade, still carrying the hog, turned towards the table he had set up for butchering animals and said, "Sure kid, when pigs fly." Those words were barely out of his mouth when the radio crackled to life and voices came through. Slade stopped, "You've gotta be kidding me." Dropping the hog, he turned and ran over to where Oliver was still sitting in front of the radio. He grabbed the mic, asking Oliver, "Can you clean this up?"

Oliver was grinning as he responded, "I-I dunno. I don't know how I got this far."

Slade pressed the talk button on the mic and said, "Mayday, mayday, mayday. This is Wedgetail three two five. Pilot and passenger down." He released the button but people were talking on the other end as if they didn't hear him. He frowned slightly but repeated his message, with the same response. He slammed the mic back onto the table and walked away, turning around once to say, "They can't hear us and we can't call out. We're still trapped."

Oliver frowned at the radio, not entirely sure where to go from there and thinking that Slade may have been right about this being a waste of time.

* * *

Oliver was ready to give up on the whole situation and beat the radio back into nonworking condition, nothing he did was working. He had managed to make the audio a lot clearer but still couldn't get the mic to work.

Slade had been taking care of their food supply, but when he came back inside he decided to give the radio a try himself. He had an idea but wasn't entirely sure it would work. Leaving Oliver sitting to the side, he sat down in front of the radio and began turning the dials, looking for a specific frequency.

"If they can't hear us, then what's the point?" Oliver asked him. As far as Oliver was concerned, it was torture having to listen to these people without having a single way to contact them.

Slade replied, "Wait. You still might have done us some good." Just then, Fyers' voice came through the radio and both men stilled. Slade held up a hand and motioned Oliver to come over to the radio.

Oliver stood next to Slade, trying to hear what Fyers was talking about. Oliver waited for Fyers to end the conversation before asking, "Who was Fyers talking to?"

Slade shook his head, "I don't know. Sounds like someone off this island, maybe his benefactor. More importantly, who or what is Scylla." He was referring to the name Fyers had used in his conversation.

Oliver was once again surprised to realize he knew the answer to that, at least partially, "Scylla and Charybdis. It's the Odyssey from one of the four nightmare chapters...Scylla was a monster."

Slade slid his machetes into the sheaths on his back before turning around with a smirk, "I want to meet this monster." He walked to the door but stopped before he went out, not looking at Oliver he asked with a sigh, "Am I going alone?" It had been well established that him and Oliver were friends but ever since he went back to the camp to find Oliver, Slade thought of the kid not just as his friend but as his new partner. He simply wanted to know if Oliver wanted that responsibility.

Oliver considered him for only a moment, knowing exactly what Slade was asking him, before grabbing his knife and following Slade to the door. They'd already been through so much together that Oliver knew he was going to follow wherever Slade Wilson led, no matter what came their way. Oliver thought the same way as Slade, they became partners when both had risked their lives to save the other, Slade when he went back to the camp for Oliver and Oliver when he went to get the herbs to save Slade's life.

Slade grinned at him and they both set off towards the jungle. The duo sprinted through the vines and brush until they came to the top of the ridge overlooking Fyers' main camp. They hid behind some logs and Slade pulled out his binoculars. "Damn," he whispered.

Oliver was on guard, "What, what is it?" Looking over the logs he saw some sort of huge weapon parked below.

Slade replied, "You were right, Scylla is a monster." He handed the binoculars over to Oliver he explained, "A Russian-made S-300 antiaircraft missile launcher. It can sometimes track up to a hundred targets whilst engaging at least a dozen." They both stared at the massive weapon for a moment before Slade continued, "I mean, from here that could shoot down a commercial airliner. Or start a war."

Oliver looked over at Slade and, seeing the seriousness on his partner's face, he had a feeling he knew what their next mission would be.


	15. Chapter 15

Oliver and Slade sat behind the large log above Fyer's camp for awhile longer monitering the activity around the launcher. It wasn't looking good, there were vehicles coming and going and guards posted around it for the entire time the two had been spying.

Slade broke the silence, "One of those missiles have an effective range of over 2,500 kilometers." He looked over at Oliver, trying to convey to him just how catastrophic a weapon like this could be in the hands of someone like Fyers. Once Oliver looked back at him and just to be sure they were on the same page he said, "We're not going anywhere until we figure out what Fyers is planning."

Oliver nodded, he knew the seriousness of the situation and knew they couldn't let their inaction be the cause of World War Three. He still couldn't help making a sarcastic comment though, after all, living with Slade as long as he had was rubbing off on him. He smirked and replied, "Wild guess? He's planning on blowing something up."

Slade looked over at him and rolled his eyes as he said, "Well, one of those could do that job. But this...this is about starting a war." He turned his gaze back to the launcher, trying to figure out what they, two guys, were going to do against a whole camp full of soldiers.

Oliver was a little confused at that as he asked, "With who?"

"Does it matter?" Slade asked, looking at Oliver once again, "We have to stop Fyers before he kills thousands of innocent people."

Oliver completely agreed with Slade on that one but they still had a pretty big problem: all the soldiers currently guarding the launcher. He didn't mean to be the pessimist of the two but felt he should bring this to Slade's attention, "There are a ton of soldiers down there. Even if we get through all them, we can't just steal a whole missile launcher." He realized him and Slade had defied the odds before, but even they weren't _that_ good.

Slade put his binoculars back to his eyes and studied the camp for a moment. Seeing some soldiers unloading a jeep full of explosives, he knew exactly what they could do. Lowering the binos he said, "Well who said anything about stealing it?"

Oliver looked over at him, not quite sure what Slade had in mind but willing to trust that he knew what he was doing. He slightly nodded before asking, "So, what's the plan? Ambush?"

Slade was back to watching the soldiers milling around below them but he shook his head at Oliver's suggestion, "It's impossible, we can't take out all six without one radioing for back-up."

Oliver was at a loss, he couldn't see anyway around this problem. Trying to think of another suggestion he remarked, "It would be good if we could get all the soldiers in one place."

When Oliver said that, an idea suddenly hit Slade. He looked over at the kid, sizing him up and trying to decide if this would actually work, seeing if he looked enough like the soldiers to make this work. He noticed Oliver was still wearing the soldier's uniform he had stolen before he met Slade and allowed himself a moment to be thankful for that stroke of luck.

Oliver noticed Slade inspecting him and turned towards him, confusion on his face as Slade simply told him, "You're right."

Oliver knew that tone of voice, it was the same tone Slade used when he had left Oliver standing on that mine so he could ambush the approaching soldiers. Slade had a plan in mind and Oliver wasn't sure he would like it...actually, he was almost positive he wouldn't like it. He opened his mouth to voice his concern but Slade interrupted him.

"Do you still have the balaclava that came with the uniform?" Slade asked him

Oliver almost laughed at that, Slade made it sound like he bought the whole set at a department store or something. Nevertheless, he replied, "Yeah, I've got it in my pocket." He paused a moment before asking the dreaded question, "Why?"

Slade smirked at him, "Because I have a plan. All we need to do is draw their attention, wait until their gathered around, and then open fire. Simple as that."

Oliver didn't like where this was going, "How do you plan to draw their attention?"

Slade smiled, "I was hoping you'd ask that. See, put that balaclava on and you could pass for one of the soldiers no problem. All you need to do is "capture" me, walk me down to that clearing, and play the part of a good little soldier just following orders. I'll keep both hands behind my back as if I'm tied up and as soon as those guys gather around, you duck, cover your head, and I'll take care of the rest." He smiled triumphantly as he finished, happy to have a solid plan and eager to execute it.

Oliver, on the other hand, thought this plan sounded like a suicide mission, "Are you crazy? We can't just walk into a crowd of armed soldiers! What if they realize I'm not part of their unit? We already know you're pretty hated around here, what if they skip the chatting and just shoot you? Nope, no way. Not happening."

Slade waited for the kid to stop rambling before asking him, "Got any better ideas? For all we know, Fyers could be planning on firing those missiles today, thousands of lives are at risk. You really want that on your shoulders? Because I don't."

Oliver sighed in defeat, he knew Slade was right. He couldn't think of another way to go about this, he would just have to trust Slade's plan and pray for the best. "Fine," he said, "I'll do it. But if we end up dead, I'm going to haunt the crap out of you."

Slade chuckled and replied, "Alright then, let's do this. You need to make it look convincing though, do whatever it takes to get them all close enough for me to take them out."

Oliver nodded and pulled the balaclava out of his pocket. Once he had it on, he looked at Slade, waiting for his signal to move out. Slade gestured for him to move and they made their way around towards the road entering the camp.

As they got closer, Slade moved his hands behind his back as if he were tied up, his pistols firmly gripped in both hands. Oliver had a hold of Slade's shoulder and tried to make it look as if he'd just captured him. Seeing a soldier leaning against the launcher, Oliver called out, "Hey!" He waited for the man to look at him before continuing, "I found an intruder while I was circling the perimeter!" He roughly shoved Slade towards the soldiers that began walking towards him, both him and Slade waiting to see if these guys were buying their act.

Three of the soldiers walked up, one obviously in charge of the other two as he glanced over his shoulder, "It's Wilson."

Oliver was alarmed to see him pull his rifle into a ready position as he stopped in front of Slade, the other two flanking him on both sides. By this time, the other three soldiers had walked closer to see what was going on.

The leader said, "You killed a few of my friends, you son of a bitch."

Slade replied, "And I'm gonna kill a few more." He pulled out his pistols and started firing as Oliver hit the deck and covered his head. Six rounds later, all the soldiers were dead and it was just Slade and Oliver once again. Oliver stood up, looking over at Slade. Sometimes he forgot how dangerous the guy could be and he was suddenly thankful he was on Slade's side.

Slade saw Oliver looking at him and sent a smirk his way, as if he knew what Oliver had been thinking. He moved off towards where the soldiers had stacked all the explosives crates and carried one back to the launcher. Oliver watched as Slade broke open the crate and handed him some pieces from the box as he instructed, "Place these around the launcher." Oliver began placing them on one side while Slade went to work on the other.

Slade shouted, "Do it quickly! Back-up will be arriving any second!"

Just then the radio that had gone unnoticed crackled to life, "They are 60 seconds out from the launch."

Both men paused and looked at each other, not realizing they were cutting it so close. Slade told Oliver, "Set your final charges and we'll blow it!"

Oliver suddenly had an idea, running around to the back of the launcher he opened up a panel that contained all the inner workings. Scanning the contents he said, "I think I have a better idea."

Slade glanced up from where he was unrolling the fuse, he stepped around the launcher and caught sight of Oliver, "What are you doing?"

Oliver finally found what he was looking for and held it up for Slade to see, "I'm taking the circuit board, computers won't work without them and neither will this."

Slade grabbed the radio and smiled, he had known the kid was smart and now that was finally being put to good use. He walked up and grabbed Oliver's shoulders as he slightly laughed, "Good. Leverage!" He released Oliver and took off towards the hills, hearing Oliver fall in step behind him. Once they had gotten back to their original place behind the log, they finally stopped and caught their breath. He glanced over at Slade, "So, what now?"

Slade held out his hand for the chip and examined it as he answered, "Now, we find somewhere safe to hide this and then call Fyers to negotiate a deal. We'll wait until dark though, as soon as he hears us on the radio he'll be sending out search teams for us."

The two heard the noise of the arriving reinforcements and looked over the log, seeing Fyers himself climb out of a jeep while several soldiers ran around looking for survivors. Slade decided this would be a good time to hide the chip so, giving Oliver the go signal, started off into the jungle.

They finally found a good hiding spot for the chip in a small, hollow space in a rotten stump about a mile away from the camp. By this time, darkness had fallen and the two headed back to the log that had become their observation post. Crouching down in front of Oliver, Slade handed him the radio, saying, "Your plan. Your call."

Oliver was surprised but took the radio. Taking a deep breath, he pressed the talk button, "Fyers."

Fyers grabbed his radio as he heard the voice, he couldn't succeed in keeping the fury out of his own voice as he responded, "Mr. Queen. I thought I might be hearing from you."

Oliver was nervous but Slade was still crouched right in front of him, completely calm. That helped Oliver calm down as well and he said, "We have the circuit board." He released the talk button and waited to see what Fyers would say next.

Still sounding angry, Fyers said, "You're making a grave mistake. My men are scouring the island for you as we speak. When they find you, they will kill you. Very slowly I'm afraid."

Slade couldn't help but smile as he heard the irritation in Fyers voice, he grabbed his binoculars and trained them on Fyers, feeling immense satisfaction at the fury he could see in his body language.

Indignation filled Oliver, Fyers was in no position to threaten them and he intended to let him know, "If you kill us then you'll never find the circuit board and after that we both know that all you'll be left with is a really ugly piece of modern art." He released the talk button with a decisive nod of his head. Looking back at Slade he saw amusement in his brown eyes at Oliver's rant.

There was a pause before Fyers asked, "Then what do you propose?"

Oliver glanced over the log as he responded, "A trade."

Fyers' voice came over the radio again, "I see. And what do you want in exchange?"

Oliver's eyes went back to Slade's as he paused a moment. Nodding his head, he took a deep breath and replied, "I want a way off the island."


	16. Chapter 16

Author's Note: Sorry this took so long! I'm working on the next chapter now so hopefully it'll be quicker. Also, have you guys noticed there are no other Slade/Oliver friendship stories? I don't get it, they're both awesome. And now Shadow(?) just adds to the awesomeness. Anyhow, if anyone wanted to write some, that would be great! There are a ton of Oliver/Felicity stories. Personally, I've been more entertained by the island flashbacks than the present day stories. Alright, on to the chapter.

After Oliver had demanded a way off the island, him and Slade waited for Fyers' reply. Slade was keeping the binoculars trained on the soldiers below, making sure no one was moving too close to their hiding spot. Not hearing anything from Fyers, Oliver pressed the transmit button on the radio again, "A simple exchange. You get us a way off the island and we'll give you the circuit board so that your missile launcher isn't just furniture."

Finally Fyers replied back, "You've grown up quite a bit, Mr. Queen. I'll give you that." He paused for a moment, contemplating how to stall Oliver, "I can get you a boat."

Oliver was ecstatic their plan was working, he lightly punched Slade's shoulder and grinned. Slade nodded but he knew it wasn't going to be that easy.

Sure enough, Fyers came back on the radio, "But I need time."

Oliver was sure he was in control now so his confidence was pretty high as he replied, "You got an hour, Fyers, and then you're never gonna-"

Slade quickly reached over and grabbed the radio from Oliver's hand, not wanting him to run his mouth right out of the deal they were in the process of making.

Oliver frowned over at Slade, confusion written on his face, "What was that for?"

Slade held eye contact with Oliver as he pressed the transmit button on the radio, talking to Fyers but clearly letting Oliver know he should listen up. "We understand it might take you longer than an hour to get a boat," he told Fyers.

Oliver realized what he did wrong then. He couldn't help it, he was excited at the prospect of finally leaving. He nodded at Slade to show him he understood his mistake though and figured it would be a good time to stay quiet and let Slade take over the conversation.

Slade continued his conversation with Fyers, "What we mean is you need to move with some dispatch."

Fyers replied almost immediately, "Ah, Wilson. Still in command, eh? I thought your little pet had staged a _coup d'état."_

_Slade was sick of playing games with that lunatic, annoyance tinged his voice as he demanded, "Just get us the damn boat!" _

_Fyers smirked but asked, "Where do you propose we meet?"_

_Slade replied, "We'll be in touch. Get us that boat and then we'll talk about an exchange." he set the radio on the ground and turned to Oliver, "We'll stay here for a few hours and keep an eye on things until we know he's got a way for us to get off the island."_

_Oliver watched as Fyers walked around the camp, apparently giving orders to the few soldiers still standing around. "This is going good though, isn't it?" he asked, "Like, this could actually work, right?"_

_Slade nodded and replied, "Yeah, but we need to stay alert. I've had enough run-ins with Fyers to know if there is any possible way to screw someone over, he knows how to do it. Also, don't get cocky. According to the intel I was given about Fyers before my mission, he's been in this merc business for a long time. He knows what he's doing." Seeing the incredulous look Oliver was giving him, Slade said, "Look, I'm not trying to give the guy credit, I'm just pointing out we need to be careful."_

_The two sat in their spot above the camp all night, checking in with Fyers every couple hours. Finally, just after sunup, Fyers informed them he had a ride off the island lined up for them and where did they want to meet for the exchange? _

_Slade had a location already planned out that would give them the greatest tactical advantage if the situation went south. After telling Fyers where to go, him and Oliver headed to a spot a little ways from __the meeting ground where they could observe Fyers' approach and make sure nothing was off before walking into the open._

_About a half hour later, they saw Fyers walk up with a group of soldiers, including Yao Fai. The two glanced at each other and Oliver started walking towards them. Slade grabbed his arm as he walked by and as Oliver turned towards him he said, "Listen, be ready to run if things go bad, alright? Pay attention and if I give you the signal, run. Understand?"_

_Oliver did understand but he also knew that if it went bad enough that Slade went down, he wasn't going to leave his partner there. He knew Slade would just argue with him if he pointed this out though, so he just nodded and followed Slade towards Fyers and his men, Slade checking all his weapons as they walked, pistol in hand._

_Fyers looked up as they emerged from the trees, "Gentlemen, welcome. So happy we were able to reach an accord."_

_Slade glanced at Oliver, "Oh good. Small talk." _

_Oliver didn't reply, his gaze was fixed on Yao Fai. He just didn't think Yao Fai was a bad guy but couldn't figure out why he would be working for someone as evil as Fyers. He looked for some kind of acknowledgment but Yao Fai didn't change his expression._

_Slade took a step forward, "We gonna get on with this?" He also looked over at Yao Fai but there was a clear warning in his eyes. Slade didn't trust him._

_Both men looked back at Fyers as he folded his arms and said, "As you wish, straight to business. The circuit board, where is it?"_

_"Somewhere safe," Oliver replied with a glare, "So get us to the boat and then we'll tell you where it is."_

_Slade kept an eye Oliver as he said this, relieved to see he looked calm and in control despite the surprise of Yao Fai showing up. Looking towards Fyers, he waited for his reaction._

_It was obvious Fyers wasn't expecting Oliver to take the lead on negotiating but he adapted __quickly, "Of course you'll be honest about its location."_

_Oliver was about to reply when Slade said, "Well, I wouldn't be. But this one's got a strange hang-up about principles and integrity."_

_Fyers tipped his head back and regarded the two, "Hm. I imagined as much. Which is why I'd like to offer a counter-proposal." Turning, he motioned for two of the soldiers to step forward. As they did, Slade and Oliver could see they were dragging an Asian girl about Oliver's age towards the group. They __threw her on the ground behind Fyers and stepped back._

_Yao Fai was in a panic, "No!" He tried to run to the girl but one of the soldiers hit him in the back of the head with his rifle, knocking him to the ground. Once he was down, the soldier handcuffed him._

_Oliver made a move towards them, "Hey!" _

_Slade put an arm out, blocking Oliver from going any closer and waited to see what this was all about._

_Fyers snapped, "You will give back to me the circuit board or I will kill Yao Fai's daughter."_

_The two men could see Fyers wasn't messing around, he meant what he said. Oliver suddenly understood why Yao Fai was doing what he was doing, it was blackmail. In a low voice, he told Slade, "That's why he wouldn't leave."_

_Fyers continued, "I can't imagine you want the death of an innocent young woman on your hands. Not with your...____principles__."_

_Oliver glared at him and clenched his teeth, trying to keep himself from punching him in his smug face. He waited to see what Slade would do._

_Slade lifted his pistol and pointed it at Fyers, ignoring the soldier who pointed his own sidearm at Slade's head. Oliver looked over at him, hoping he had a plan to get out of this mess. Whatever happened though, he would trust his partner's actions. Oliver had learned his lesson back at the airstrip._

_"Let the girl go," Slade said in a low, threatening voice._

_Fyers didn't say anything for a moment but then took a step back, "No deal? Very well." He turned __to the soldiers standing around the girl, "Kill her!"_

_Everything seemed to happen in a blur after that, the girl attacked the two soldiers near her, Yao Fai, hands still cuffed behind his back, went to work on the guys holding him, Slade and another few soldiers began firing at each other, and Oliver tackled a soldier that was coming up behind Slade._

_Slade killed his few guys and watched as the girl proceeded to beat the crap out of Fyers, hearing Oliver dealing with the guy behind him but not paying much attention. Oliver was a good enough __fighter to handle himself by now and Slade trusted Oliver to have his back._

_Oliver knocked his guy out and looked up, checking on everyone else. He and Slade watched as the girl knocked Fyers out and got up, walking towards them. _

_"Well, that was unexpected," Slade commented as the girl walked past him. He gave Fyers one more look before turning towards where Oliver and the girl were standing. _

_Oliver saw movement in the jungle and yelled, "Slade!" Just then bullets started flying towards them as another group of soldiers quickly descended on them._

_Slade quickly spun around at Oliver's yell and ducked as the soldiers began shooting, unholstering _

_his own weapons and returning fire. _

_The girl grabbed Yao Fai and helped him along while Oliver took point and the three made their way farther into the jungle with Slade bringing up the rear, firing behind them in bursts to keep anyone from getting too close. One of the stray rounds from the soldiers caught Yao Fai in the leg and sent him down to the ground. Oliver had to be the one to pick him up this time since he couldn't keep any weight on the leg anymore. He put Yao Fai down behind a log as he and the girl crouched next to him, waiting for Slade to catch up._

_Yao Fai reached over and grabbed Oliver's arm to get his attention and said, "Get her to safety! Now! I will only slow you down! Go!"_

_By this time Slade had thrown himself over the log and was returning fire as best he could from the limited cover he had. They needed to move quickly or they would all die. "You need to go now!" he __shouted to Oliver._

_Oliver grabbed the girl and dragged her away from Yao Fai, pulling her through the jungle as, once again, Slade took up the rear. The three sprinted through the jungle until they could no longer hear anyone behind them, even then Slade kept them moving, only taking short breaks to listen for approaching soldiers before starting through the jungle once again. _

_They did this until night fell, then under the cover of darkness, they circled around to where they __had hidden the circuit board. Oliver was in the lead and walked over to the rotten stump, reaching his hand in to grab the circuit board. His heart stopped when he came up empty handed. He searched once again but couldn't find it anywhere. He slowly turned around to face the other two. "Slade..." he said in a shaky voice._

_Slade knew something was wrong as soon as he heard Oliver's tone, he paused and shined the flashlight on him as Oliver continued, "The circuit board's gone."_

_This couldn't be happening, Slade thought to himself, Oliver must have missed it or something. He walked up and shoved Oliver out of the way, shining the light into the hollow space and searching it himself. Sure enough, it was empty. "Damn..." he whispered, "Fyers played us. While he was screwing us around, his men were combing the woods for it." He got back to his feet and walked up to Oliver, grabbing the front of his shirt and pulling him closer he said, "Now his missile launcher is fully operational-"_

_Oliver interrupted him, "And he was never gonna let us off the island, I get it!" He shoved Slade back and they may have gotten into a wrestling match if the girl hadn't spoken up just then, "Of course he wasn't gonna help you! He couldn't chance you warning the mainland what he has planned."_

_The two men stared at her for a moment before Oliver stated, "She speaks English."_

_Slade kept watching her, not quite sure if this was a good thing or not as Oliver said, "Yeah, well guess what? Neither one of us have any idea what his plans are."_

_The girl looked him right in the eye as she replied, "I do._

_Oliver and Slade looked at each other, silently communicating before apparently coming to an agreement and turning back to the girl..._


	17. Chapter 17

Slade was the first to speak up, "What are you doing on this island?"

The girl glanced away before answering, "I don't really see why that's any of your concern."

Slade frowned, "It's my concern because I need to be able to trust you if we're going to work together. Your father has already proven untrustworthy, what makes you any different?"

Shado glared at him and said, "You don't know my father, he's a good man. An honorable man."

Slade snorted at that at was about to reply when Oliver elbowed him and interrupted, "We haven't actually been introduced yet. My name is Oliver and this is Slade."

The girl smiled at him, "My name is Shado."

Oliver smiled back and nodded before saying, "Can you excuse us for a minute, Shado?" He grabbed Slade and turned, walking a couple paces away.

Slade was irritated, "What was that for? We need to know more about this girl!"

Oliver rolled his eyes, "I seriously doubt she means us harm. Besides, she just had to leave her dad behind with Fyers, go easy on her."

Slade sighed, there were Oliver's principles again. "Fine," he said, "But I still don't trust her."

Turning, the two walked back to Shado and Slade said, "We might have gotten off on the wrong foot. I'm...I'm sorry."

Shado smiled at him, "It's alright. I understand your need for caution."

Slade nodded and said, "We'll take you back to our headquarters, it's safe there and we have plenty of supplies." He gestured for Oliver to take point and the three set off through the jungle with Shado in the middle and Slade bringing up the back.

By the time they arrived back at the plane, the sun was just coming up. None of them were tired, surprisingly. Oliver supposed the night's events had set them too much on edge for sleep. He figured they would set to work trying to figure out Fyers' plan and stop it but Slade surprised him by challenging Shado to a sparring match. Slade figured if the girl was going to help them, he needed to see how skilled she was and if she was going to be more of a nuisance than a help.

Oliver sat to the side as the two sparred, playing around with the bow he had found in one of the weapons caches in the plane, occasionally glancing up to check the progress of the fight. It seemed very evenly match but he looked up in time to see his partner get tossed to the ground by Shado.

Slade remarked breathlessly, "You'll have to teach me that one."

Shado replied, "Only if you show me where the knife was."

Slade smirked and pushed the blade against her back, he would have won that battle against an actual enemy.

Shado sighed and stood up, giving Slade a hand up as well.

Slade looked down at her, "Who taught you how to fight?"

Shado stated, "My father wanted a son." She turned, walking towards where Oliver was sitting.

Slade remarked sarcastically, "He got one."

Seeing Oliver attempting to draw the bow, Shado told him, "Careful. The tension in that bow is 150 pounds. Snap it, you'll end up with carbon fiber shrapnel in your eyes."

Hearing this, Slade walked over, "She's right. You're not strong enough, kid." Looking back to Shado he asked, "Go again?"

Oliver shook his head and said with sarcasm, "You know, it's pretty exciting that both of you are such bad-asses but don't you think we should maybe be making a plan to stop Fyers and...I dunno...save your dad?"

Shado looked at Slade, "Does he always whine this much?"

Slade replied, "This is one of his good days." He saw Oliver roll his eyes in annoyance and smiled to himself, he'd have to apologize for that later.

Pausing and looking Oliver over, Shado asked, "Can he fight?"

Feeling Oliver's eyes on him once again, Slade pretended to give that some thought before answering in mock seriousness, "I've tried. Limited success." Add that to the apology list too, Slade thought to himself. He hadn't forgotten the time Oliver had taken down the gunman after Slade had been shot and Oliver had just taken down a guy at the failed meet with Fyers. Slade just liked to mess with him.

Oliver finally spoke up, "Sitting right here."

Shado said, "Well, I haven't tried yet."

Oliver looked at her incredulously while Slade laughed.

A little while later, Slade called a break. Shado walked out the door, heading for the creek a little ways from the plane to refill her water. Slade waited until she left before walking over and sitting down next to Oliver, who was back to playing around with the bow. Slade didn't understand the kid's fascination with it, he preferred swords and knives himself. Nudging Oliver to get his attention, Slade said, "I'm heading out to go hunting. While I'm gone, see if you can learn more about the girl. She seems to trust you more than she does me."

Oliver nodded, Slade may be a better at fighting, hunting...surviving...but Oliver was much more of a people person, a skill which rarely came into use here...had actually gotten him into more trouble here. He looked over as Slade spoke up again, "One more thing, kid. We may be working with Shado but remember, you and I are partners. No matter what happens with her, Fyers, or Yao Fai, that comes first."

Oliver was surprised but somewhat relieved to hear Slade say this. He had been watching Shado spar and couldn't help but think that Slade probably wouldn't have given Oliver the time of day if he'd met Shado first. She was a terrific fighter and obviously a survivor. Don't get him wrong, he liked Shado a lot and was happy she had joined them but he wasn't sure how he would fit into the group anymore. The way he figured it, Slade would get more help from her than from Oliver. Trying to sound nonchalant so the relief wouldn't be evident, he joked, "Is that like your version of bros before hoes?"

Slade grinned at him, "Pretty much, except us Australians are more eloquent than you Americans." He knew Oliver pretty well by now and knew that despite the self-confident front Oliver put on, he was surprisingly insecure at times. Shado would be a big help to them, no doubt about it, and the three were quickly becoming friends but Slade and Oliver were partners and Slade wanted to make it clear to the kid that nothing was going to change that. Oliver had once told Slade that he was like the big brother Oliver had always wanted and truth be told, Oliver filled the role of the annoying yet lovable little brother perfectly, although Slade would never admit that out loud because then he would have to confirm that he cared about the kid and Oliver would never let him live that down. Standing up, Slade told Oliver, "I probably won't be back until later this afternoon but tomorrow we're getting back to our regular training. That includes the pull-up bar." He laughed as Oliver made a show of groaning and dropping his head.

Shado came back with not only her canteen filled but also a bucket of water. Oliver watched curiously while Shado set a bowl in front of him, filling it about three quarters full of water. "Put your hand up," she ordered.

Slade watched the proceedings as he gathered up his hunting supplies, not entirely sure what Shado had planned.

Oliver held his hand in the air, waiting to see what this was for.

"Palm facing me," Shado corrected patiently.

Oliver did as she said and waited for her to get to the point.

Shado walked in front of Oliver and stopped with her hands behind her back, "Hit the water."

Oliver stared at her in confusion, "What?"

"Hit it," Shado answered firmly.

Oliver lightly slapped the surface of the water and Shado nodded, "Again."

Oliver looked at her to make sure she was serious before slapping the water again, slightly harder this time.

Shado told him, "Again. Harder."

Oliver answered, "If the point of this is to make me feel like an idiot, it's working."

Slade laughed from where he was standing, trying to cover it with a cough as Shado sent a glare his way. Shaking his head, he grabbed his supplies and weapons and, giving Oliver a quick wave, headed out the door and into the jungle.

Shado waited until he left before sitting down facing Oliver, smiling when he continued to slap the water in the bowl. "A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step."

Oliver nodded, "Confucius. Great. Starting to see the family resemblance." He hit the water once again, flinching slightly as it splashed up towards his face.

Shado watched him before saying, "Lao-tzu, actually. Again."

Oliver did it again but he didn't have much water left in the bowl. He glanced at her, "Now what?"

Firmly she told him, "Fill the bowl, start again."

Oliver shook his head but did as she directed.

Oliver had been at the water slapping for a couple hours now and figured he'd earned a break. He watched as Shado started what appeared to be stretching exercises, seemingly contemplating something as he observed her balancing upside down on just her hands. Slade's words were running through his mind and he figured now would be a good time to find out more about Shado. He spoke up, "My mom does yoga."

Shado looked at him, waiting for him to continue. Sure enough, he started talking again, "Hey, remember when Slade and I rescued you?"

She frowned at him, "_You_ rescued _me_?"

Oliver rolled his eyes and tossed up his hands, "Fine, when we all rescued each other. You said you knew why Fyers wanted Yao Fai. And how he was forcing him to help? Feel like sharing? I'm almost out of slapping water."

Shado got back to her feet and turned to Oliver, "My father was a jiang jun in the Peoples Liberation Army. A general. I didn't hear the details of Fyers plan, but he wants my father to be the face of it. A scapegoat to take the blame and conceal their own involvement."

Oliver considered this for a moment before asking, "Why was Yao Fai on the island in the first place?"

Shado turned away as she thought about how to answer it, quickly turning back when Oliver said, "Fyers says he murdered people." She looked at Oliver but she could see he didn't mean that as an insult or accusation. He was honestly wondering. She sighed and replied, "No. He didn't." She explained to him what happened and why she had ended up on this island along with her father, ending with, "I'm worried...this island...what he must have had to do to survive. That it changed him."

Oliver looked her in the eye as he said with complete conviction, "He saved my life. He's still a good man, Shado."

Shado watched him closely as he said this, relieved to see he was telling the truth and not just making her feel better. She smiled at him before standing back up and filling his bowl with more water. "Again," she said.

It was dark when Slade arrived back at the plane, carrying three dead animals he had hunted. He walked in and announced, "I've got dinner." He stopped next to Oliver, watching him slap at the water. "You're still doing that..." he said with a sigh, walking past Oliver to what Oliver now referred to as the butcher table. He continued sarcastically, "Fyers better be careful with his bowls of water."

Oliver's attention was fully on Slade as soon as he walked in so he caught the look of annoyance Slade threw in Shado's direction. By now, Oliver wholeheartedly agreed with Slade's sentiments, "When are we gonna do _actual_ training?"

Slade smiled at Oliver, relieved that he didn't seem to be taking Shado's "methods" too seriously. The kid was turning into a good soldier and Slade didn't want him to get off track. Turning his gaze to Shado, he waited for her to answer Oliver's question.

"There once was a young boy whose father dropped him off at a monastery to study Kung Foo," she began.

Oliver rubbed his face and said in a low voice, "Good. A story."

Ignoring him, Shado continued, "After a year, the boy came to visit his family. When asked what he'd learned, the boy hung his head in shame. All the monks had him do was slap water in a barrel for a year."

Slade walked back to where Oliver was sitting, grabbing some things he needed to skin the animals. Passing next to Shado, he said in irritation, "Well, we don't have a year. So I hope your training regiment's a bit faster."

Oliver watched Slade walk back to the table, not removing his gaze even as Shado started talking again. To be honest, he was happy Slade had finally returned because he was feeling less and less confident about their situation and becoming more stressed about how they were going to survive. Being with Slade always helped him calm down though because not only was Slade constantly cool and collected, Oliver knew Slade would watch out for him which allowed Oliver the chance to relax his guard a little. Oliver just didn't trust Shado to have his back like he trusted his partner. In fact, he doubted he would ever trust anyone as much as he trusted Slade.

Shado didn't notice Oliver's divided attention and continued on with her story, "The family didn't believe him, so he showed them."

Slade glanced back and noticed Oliver looking at him. He could see some apprehension in the kid's eyes and sent him a smile, trying to silently let Oliver know that everything was fine right now. He was rewarded with Oliver smiling back at him before returning his attention to Shado. Satisfied that Oliver was alright, Slade returned to his cooking.

"He raised his hand and hit the table they were eating on," here Shado paused and looked at Oliver, "It broke in half."

Oliver shook his head, "I'm gonna be able to break a table?"

"Even better," Shado said, standing up. She grabbed the bow and held it out to Oliver.

Oliver sighed but figured he didn't have anything to lose. He stood up, taking the bow from her. She moved behind him and he glanced back, waiting for her instructions.

Slade knelt by the fire to the side of the other two, keeping an eye on the situation while he waited for the meat to cook. He was curious to see what Shado would have Oliver do next.

She arranged Oliver's hands into the correct position and then ordered, "Draw the bow."

Oliver slowly drew it back and held it in a shooting position. He noticed that he didn't have any trouble with it, despite the tension being set so high.

Slade grinned and got to his feet, "I'll be damned."

Oliver slowly let go of the string and looked back at Shado, "What's next?"

She smiled, "We teach you to shoot."

Oliver nodded and turned back to the bow, drawing it up into a shooting position once again.

Slade watched him for a moment, seeing his eyes light up as he held the bow. He had to give Shado some credit, despite her crazy methods and random stories, she apparently knew what she was doing. Turning back to their dinner, he figured he would cut his and Oliver's training short tomorrow so the kid could focus more on his shooting skills.


	18. Chapter 18

Author's Note: Thank you Riptide2 and NinjaRiderWriter for the reviews! Didn't expect this to even turn into a real story haha it was just to help me in English class. I'm glad people are enjoying it though! I'm honestly not sure what I'll do with this when the season ends. Probably end this story after the last episode of season 1, write some what-if and independent stories until next season, then make a continuation of this one during season 2. I've considered what had happened to Slade since he wasn't with Oliver and have been playing around with a story where he shows up in Starling City and becomes a second vigilante. That one is still a major work in progress though so probably won't be posted for awhile. The writers sort of wrote themselves into a corner on that one since Slade wasn't even considered as a character for the show until they were already a few episodes in; the producer had wanted just one more surprise added to the island. The pretext I used in my other story was since Slade is with the Australian government and on the island for a mission that no one knew about, the government covered up both the military island base and Slade being there. Who knows what they'll do though, just hope he doesn't get killed off! Also, I'm not very happy with this chapter, don't really know why, but I promise the next one will be better! Alright, sorry for rambling, I'm done! =)

The next morning, Slade woke up just as the darkness of the night was fading away. He glanced over at the cot set up a little ways away where Oliver was still sleeping peacefully. Since Shado joined them, they gave her a cot at the other end of the plane while Oliver moved his over to Slade's side. Slade looked at Oliver for a moment, thinking of how far the two had come since Oliver had barged into his life. He never thought he would care as much as he did about Oliver and yet, the kid had managed to get past his defenses. For that reason, Slade still wasn't too sure about Shado training Oliver to shoot the bow, or training him at all for that matter. Slade wanted to focus Oliver's training on close quarter combat, something he knew the kid could use to protect himself if Slade wasn't there and something Oliver had already shown proficiency in. Plus, Slade didn't completely trust Shado and he really didn't want his training of Oliver to get screwed up by Shado's questionable...methods. But then again, it was obvious Oliver was excited about shooting the bow and it _would _be helpful to the group if Oliver could provide some form of cover...Slade shook his head, too many thoughts for this early in the morning. He stood up and stretched before walking over to Oliver's cot, shaking his shoulder to wake him up.

Oliver groaned when he felt the shaking pull him from the warm, dreamless sleep he'd been having. Reluctantly, he cracked an eye open and saw his partner standing over him, grinning. "What is it?" Oliver mumbled, eyes falling shut again.

Slade smirked and whispered, "Rise and shine, kid. I promised you a training session this morning, remember?"

Oliver couldn't believe Slade was doing this. He opened his eyes again, sent his best glare at Slade, but slowly pulled himself out of bed, yawning and stretching as he did so. Eyes still tired and hair sticking every direction, Oliver reminded Slade of a kid even more in the mornings than usual. Slade figured that was part of the reason he was so protective of Oliver. Even after Oliver's time on the island, Slade could still see the vulnerability in his eyes.

The two walked out of the plane, not bothering to wake up Shado. Slade had told her the night before that he planned to train with Oliver the next day, he just hadn't told her when. In truth, part of the reason for this early morning training was so Shado wouldn't be with them. Slade didn't have anything against her but he didn't want her interfering with what he was trying to teach Oliver. It seemed like that girl had a vague story or life lesson for everything. Slade was trying to train a soldier, not a Buddhist-Ninja. Slade and Oliver walked for awhile until they entered a small clearing in the jungle with a creek running along one side. It was their favorite place to train because it was secluded, easy to watch, and water was easily accessible.

A couple hours later, Slade finally called training to an end. Oliver collapsed on the grass, pulling his knees to his chest and laying his head down, about to doze off right there. After all the sparring after getting up so early, Oliver wasn't sure how he was going to make the rest of the day.

Slade walked over and sat down next to him, feeling Oliver lean against him almost immediately. Glancing down, he smiled when he saw Oliver's eyes already shut. Regardless of the training, Oliver was definitely still a kid. He looked at the sun, judging the time to be somewhere around 9:00 a.m. He didn't move, figuring he'd let Oliver rest up a little before heading back to the plane. Slade scanned the jungle around them, alert for any threats. Seeing everything seemed secure, he sighed and relaxed a little, enjoying the calmness around them, the only noises being the running water of the creek, the sounds of the various jungle life, and Oliver's soft breathing.

They stayed like that for about an hour before Oliver woke up. He was embarrassed at first when he realized he'd fallen asleep against Slade but Slade just laughed at him and stood up, offering Oliver a hand up as well. Slade started back to the plane with Oliver falling in a few paces behind him. As they walked, Oliver pulled out the picture of Laurel he kept with him. He looked at it, vowing to do whatever it took to make it back home to her. Slade's voice made Oliver glance up as he entered the plane and he saw Shado bent over a box, studying the intel photos of Fyers' main camp.

"Rescuing your father and stopping Fyers is not gonna be some walk in the park. They're not gonna allow us to just stroll on into their camp," Slade told Shado. Honestly, he didn't have any desire to rescue Yao Fai. As far as he was concerned, stopping Fyers was the main objective right now. Not to mention that he did not want Yao Fai hanging around his small group. He didn't care how good of a soldier Yao Fai was or if he was Shado's father, he had already abandoned Slade once and had betrayed Oliver twice. Not exactly someone Slade wanted on the team.

Shado ignored his cynicism and said, "Which is why we'll need cover."

Slade shook his head, "If both of us are infiltrating, who will provide that?"

Shado tossed her head toward Oliver, "He will." They both looked at Oliver.

Oliver had been deep in thought but glanced up in surprise when he registered what Shado said. "Me?" he asked in confusion. He was barely trained in hand-to-hand, weapons training was zip to this point.

Slade laughed at that suggestion and turned back to Shado, "The assault rifle is flushed. It's useless."

She put her hands on her hips and answered, "We have a bow, arrows-"

Slade interrupted, "And no one capable of shooting them." He glanced over and pointed at Oliver, "No offense, kid." He knew Shado was going to teach Oliver to shoot the bow but he didn't think she was planning on using that non-existent skill set on an actual mission, at least for a long time.

Oliver shook his head, "No, I was gonna say the same thing."

Slade looked back to Shado as Shado sized up Oliver for a moment, turning to Slade as he said, "I think we should be spending our time trying to devise a plan, not lower our already slim chances of survival."

Shado walked over to the bow and grabbed it and the quiver of arrows. Walking towards Oliver, she paused to tell Slade, "He'll hit his mark by sundown. If not, we'll do it your way." She walked to Oliver and held out her hand, waiting for him to take it.

Oliver hesitated and looked at Slade, not quite sure what he should be doing.

Slade was still irritated with Shado but shrugged at Oliver and nodded, telling him silently to go with her. After all, it wasn't Oliver suggesting this ridiculous training session. Slade knew that all he would've had to give was a slight shake of the head and Oliver would have stayed at his side, no questions asked. Oh well, what harm could one shooting practice do? Best case, Oliver was naturally a great shot with a bow. Worst case, they lose a day and begin with a real plan tomorrow.

Oliver took Shado's hand and, with one more unsure glance back at his partner, followed her into the jungle. Slade watched them go before putting the rest of his gear on and gathering up a few of his own weapons. He would do a surprise check-in on their lesson in a little while.

Shado finally chose a wooded area not far from the plane and got Oliver into a proper shooting stance. Pointing out a tree directly in front of them and a fair distance away, she told him, "Set your sight, hit the tree."

Oliver let the arrow loose. Straight shot right past the trunk of the tree. He watched it disappear into the jungle beyond. "Probably hit _a_ tree," he said sarcastically.

Shado grabbed another arrow and handed it to him, amusement on her face, "Set your sight, hit the tree."

Oliver drew the bow but paused as Shado laid her hand on his chest.

"Steady your anchor point," she said softly.

Oliver looked down at her, both looking into each other's eyes. The moment was broken as Shado cleared her throat and stepped back slightly and Oliver looked back at his target. Just as he was about to shoot, they heard Slade's voice from beside them, "I hope you're getting closer."

Oliver jumped and lowered the bow, sometimes he really hated his partner's ability to apparently appear from thin air. He wondered how long he'd been watching them. Judging by the tone of Slade's voice, he'd observed enough. He looked over and saw Slade leaning against a tree to his left.

Slade continued, "And teaching him to be a better marksman. It's not as though our lives depend on it or anything." He shoved himself off the tree and, with a warning look shot at Oliver, turned and walked back into the jungle.

Oliver sighed, Slade's warning was sent and received. But it's not like anything would actually happen between him and Shado...he took a deep breath and drew the bow again, aiming at the tree.

An hour later and Oliver still hadn't hit the tree a single time. He was getting increasingly frustrated but Shado told him to try again. He drew the bow, let the arrow loose...and watched as it disappeared into the jungle with all the other attempts.

Shado grabbed the bow from him, "You're thinking too much."

Oliver quipped, "Nobody ever accused me of that before."

Shado rolled her eyes and quickly spun around, shooting two branches off the tree with two arrows, one right after the other. She handed Oliver the bow again as he smirked, "Showoff."

Shado tried to explain to Oliver how she managed to do that, ending with a gentle, "Give into your senses. Don't think."

Oliver gazed into her eyes for a long moment before they both leaned in and softly kissed. The thought of Laurel entered Oliver's mind and he pulled away, quickly letting go of Shado. So much for Slade's warning, Oliver thought to himself.

Shado spoke before Oliver, "You're right, this is definitely not the time or place."

Oliver answered, "I know, it's...no. It's just there's uh...there's someone. And it's a mile past complicated but I can't..." He hoped she would understand.

Shado did understand. She looked down, "She know how much you love her?"

Oliver looked away, "I suspect right now she doesn't. But as soon as I'm home, she will."

They decided to take a break and headed back to the plane. Slade was already there when they walked in, sharpening one of his machetes, back to them. He tensed up at first but relaxed when he recognized the sound of Oliver's footsteps. He didn't look at them but asked, "So how did our Robin Hood do? As expected?"

Neither Shado nor Oliver said anything, both still feeling a little awkward from the kiss.

Slade continued, "So back to the drawing board we go." He reached down to continue sharpening his machete when he heard a noise outside the plane. He quickly stood up and faced the entrance, which alerted the other two. All three held weapons, ready to attack. None of them were ready when Yao Fai himself walked through the door.

"Yao Fai!" Oliver exclaimed, setting his weapon down. Shado dropped her knife and ran to him, throwing her arms around his neck.

Slade noticed Oliver starting to walk closer and stepped over to him, blocking him slightly with his shoulder while still facing Yao Fai. Oliver kept his eyes on Yao Fai but stopped just behind Slade.

Shado took a step back, keeping her hands on Yao Fai's shoulders. Slade asked suspiciously, "How did you escape?"

Yao Fai finally looked at Slade and saw the unspoken threat being directed towards him. "I didn't," he said.

Right then, Fyers' men stepped through all three entrances, effectively surrounding Slade and Oliver, rifles ready.

Slade clenched his teeth, "You son of a bitch." He pulled his machete back, ready to stab Yao Fai but a soldier raised his rifle and hit Slade hard on the back of the head before he could reach Yao Fai.

"Hey!" Oliver yelled. Slade hit the ground on his back and Oliver knelt next to his head, trying to see how bad he'd gotten hit. Oliver could see some blood leaking from where Slade clutched his head with one hand and Oliver hovered over him, trying to position himself to block anymore attacks on his fallen partner. Of course, he wouldn't be any match against a whole group of armed soldiers but he would definitely take some out before they killed him.

Yao Fai watched all this and stepped forward, looking down at Oliver with cold eyes as he said, "Your time on this island is at an end."

Oliver stared up at him, not sure what that meant and even less sure he wanted to find out.


	19. Chapter 19

Author's Note: Once again, thank you guys for the reviews! I'm glad you're enjoying the story! It really sucks there's only one episode left in the season, I don't know how I'm gonna make it until next season! Also, I'm not gonna write too much about Shado just because she's a more difficult character and doesn't really pertain to what this main storyline is.

Yao Fai nodded at a couple soldiers standing nearby and they stepped forward, roughly dragging Oliver and Slade to their feet and binding their hands. Yao Fai watched them silently, keeping Shado next to him.

Once the two were securely bound, Yao Fai walked outside with Shado, starting towards the jungle in the direction of Fyers' main camp. The soldiers and their prisoners followed behind. Eventually the group came to a wide trail through the jungle where a cargo truck was parked. Yao Fai and Shado climbed into the cab with the driver while the rest of the group piled into the back. Slade was forced in first and Oliver quickly followed, sitting down next to his partner. The soldiers took seats on either side and across from them, quickly losing interest and talking quietly among themselves as the truck began moving.

Oliver watched them all and, seeing no attention was being paid to them, leaned closer to Slade. "So, what's your plan for this one?" he asked in a whisper.

Slade was quiet, he had run through every possible scenario and they all seemed to end with one or both of them getting shot. Looking over, he could see the fear that Oliver was trying to hide, along with a flicker of hope that Slade would bring them out of this, just like he had brought them out of everything else. Slade didn't have a plan but he'd be damned if he would let Oliver know that. "Just follow my lead," Slade told him quietly. He shifted slightly closer to Oliver so their shoulders were brushing and felt Oliver relax slightly at the contact. That was about all he could do for the kid at the moment but it seemed to be enough. Oliver weakly smiled at him and Slade vowed to himself that, no matter what else happened, he would do his best to get the kid off this island and back to his family where he belonged.

Before long, they pulled into the camp and the truck slowed to a stop. The soldiers grabbed Slade and Oliver, hauling them to their feet and shoving them off the truck. From here, the majority of soldiers branched off, leaving one each to take Oliver and Slade to a tent set up towards the middle of the camp. Walking in, they saw Shado was already there, standing to the side with her hands bound this time but no worse for wear. Yao Fai was also there, back turned to the door. The soldiers stopped Slade and Oliver in the center of the room and Oliver looked around, noticing a familiar face sitting at a table operating a radio. The man looked over and it clicked: the beaten man from the cave, the supposed ship-wrecked student. Oliver's eyes widened and he clenched his teeth, lunging at the man. The soldier holding him jerked him back and Slade pulled loose from his own captor for a moment enough to sidestep closer to Oliver before the man got hold of him again.

"Save it," Slade told Oliver, "We don't have the luxury to be indulging in vendettas." This comment was directed both at Oliver and at Yao Fai but Oliver calmed down some, still tense but standing quietly next to his partner.

Slade disregarded his own advice and glared at Yao Fai, "You led Fyers right to us, you coward!"

Yao Fai finally walked closer, "Fyers was about to firebomb the entire forest just to eliminate you," he looked at his daughter, "This way you all have a chance."

In a low, threatening tone, Slade replied, "Well, pray I don't get the chance to repay your mercy."

Before it could go any farther, Fyers walked into the tent, looking Slade and Oliver over critically. "How fitting," he began, "Everyone reunited for the end."

Oliver felt his blood boil as soon as Fyers entered. "The end of what?" he asked in irritation, "What is all this for?"

Fyers glanced at Oliver but ignored the question, turning towards his radio operator instead, listening to an airplane transmission over the radio. The radio operator quickly told the pilot to adjust his course and, hearing an affirmative from the pilot, turned to his boss, "The plane will be within range of Lian Yu in 26 minutes."

"Good," Fyers nodded, "Keep tracking it."

Oliver was beyond confused and spoke up sarcastically,"That's a commercial airliner, Fyers. It's not like it can land here!"

Fyers turned to look at him, "It won't be landing anywhere, Mr. Queen." There was a brief pause before Fyers continued, "I'm going to destroy it."

Oliver's jaw dropped and he glanced over at Slade, seeing the same confusion on his face. Looking back to Fyers, Oliver exclaimed, "This doesn't make any sense! Why do you want to blow up a plane?" He never was one to keep his mouth shut and Fyers hadn't killed them yet which made Oliver feel slightly more confident.

Fyers walked up to Oliver and explained in a cold voice, "When the New York stock exchange reopened after 9/11, the Dow Jones dropped nearly 685 points." He came to a stop directly in front of Oliver and asked, "Can you imagine what would happen to China, the world's second-largest economy, if all air travel in and out of China were to be grounded indefinitely?"

Slade suddenly understood everything perfectly. The base close to China's mainland, the secret radio transmissions, the long-distance missile launcher...Wearily he stated, "You want to destabilize China's economy." He had no idea what to do, they didn't have much time to somehow escape and stop the attack.

About 20 minutes until the plane would be in range

Fyers shook his head, "It's not what _I _want, rather my employer." he smiled and boasted, "We have enough missiles here to shoot down any aircraft approaching the mainland. That will _decimate_ China's economy."

Fyers smirked at the expression on Slade's face and turned to Yao Fai as he said, "Especially once a rogue element from China's own military claims responsibility." The smirk disappeared from his face and he addressed Yao Fai solely, "You see, as inconvenient as you occasionally were, you were always worth more alive to me than dead."

Yao Fai quietly told him, "You should have killed me because I won't do it.

Fyers simply raised his eyebrows and spun around, punching Oliver in the face and shooting Shado in the shoulder and Slade in the leg. Slade and Shado both collapsed to the ground while one soldier forced Oliver down to his knees. Yao Fai rushed past Fyers to his daughter, crouching next to her and covering her wound.

Fyers coldly stated, "I need you alive but I can kill everyone you care about." He raised his gun again, pointing at it Shado's head.

Yao Fai held up his hand, "Stop! I'll do it!" He took a shaky breath and looked back down at Shado.

Fyers lowered his gun, "I knew your good judgment could be counted on." He stepped back as he said, "Come along now, we need to get you back into uniform."

Oliver sat and watched the events unfolding between the two men and for the first time in a long time he felt undeniable fear of Fyers, he didn't have any doubt that the man would follow through on his word and kill them all. Slowly, he became aware of Slade groaning next to him, trying to fight off the soldier attempting to haul him back to his feet. Fyers also looked over at the disturbance and pointed his gun at Slade, walking over to help the soldier subdue him.

Oliver closed his eyes, praying Fyers wasn't just going to execute his partner right there on the spot. As soon as Fyers stepped away, Oliver felt the handle of a knife pushed into his hand. He grasped it, trying to hide it in his hands as much as possible. Thankfully, Slade was causing enough trouble to warrant the attention of both soldiers so Oliver was left alone, at least for now. He worked to get the blade positioned across the leather binding his hands, not quite sure what he would do if he actually managed to get loose but figuring he'd cross that bridge when he came to it...if he came to it.

About 15 minutes now.

Slade was in too much pain to put up much of a struggle against the two soldiers but he tried until Fyers walked up, gun pointed at his head, "Wilson. You have been the biggest annoyance thus far. I don't believe Yao Fai has any attachment to you nor do you have any info that would be useful to me." He paused and smirked before continuing in a tone that implied Slade was stupid, "What I'm saying is, you are completely expendable. If you prove to be a hassle, I'm going to kill you and be done with it. Do I make myself clear?"

Slade glared at him and opened his mouth, about to unleash every insult he could think of until Fyers followed through on his threat but he saw Oliver out of the corner of his eye and realized that if something happened to him, Oliver would be completely alone and most definitely would not make it off this island. Slade remembered his own year as a captive in this camp...he couldn't let the kid go through that by himself. Slade shut his mouth and nodded silently, ceasing his struggle.

Fyers nodded, "Good choice." He then looked at the soldiers and directed, "Leave him there, if he or the kid tries anything...shoot him." Turning, he gestured for one of the soldiers to grab Yao Fai and he grabbed Shado, leading the way out the door. The remaining soldier retreated to the back of the tent, keeping an eye on the prisoners but not really paying much attention.

Oliver let out a breath when Fyers left and turned his head to where Slade was laying, propped up on one side, wounded leg stretched out in front of him. He gave his partner a quick one-over, relieved to see that while Slade was still bleeding, the blood was already beginning to clot on its own. Once again, it looked like infection was going to be their worst enemy. Oliver sighed, he doubted Fyers would be providing medical treatment. Oliver noticed Slade didn't seem that focused and was about to ask him what he was doing when he remembered; not only was Slade dealing with blood loss, he probably had a concussion from getting hit in the back of the head when they were captured. "You okay?" Oliver asked him quietly.

Slade started to nod but grimaced as the slight movement shot pain through his skull. "A little dizzy," he mumbled. That was an understatement. Between his head swimming and the intense pain from the bullet wound, he was having a tough time staying upright.

Glancing around and noticing the guard didn't seem too worried, Oliver scooted closer to Slade, positioning himself so Slade could lean against him. Slade did so, sending a grateful smile to Oliver.

They sat in silence for a little while, Oliver occasionally moving a bit to make sure Slade didn't pass out or asking pointless questions (You alright? How you doing?) to test his coherency.

Slade had enough medical training to know not to fall asleep with a concussion but he didn't mind Oliver's questions, they kept his mind from wandering to the memories of the last time he'd been captured by Fyers, when he'd been tortured by his par-... by his _former_ partner, or counting down the time before the attack on the airliner, which would be in about...five minutes. He looked over at the sound of Oliver's voice, "Slade, can I ask you something?"

Slade was a little confused, since when did Oliver ever ask before running his mouth? "Sure, kid." Slade responded.

Oliver hesitated before asking, "Are we...I mean, do you think we're going to die?"

Slade was surprised and opened his mouth to dismiss the question but stopped when he saw the look on Oliver's face. The look that said he didn't want empty reassurances, he honestly wanted to know what they were up against. If there was still a possibility of surviving. Slade sighed and answered honestly, "I don't know. But I can guarantee if I live, you will live."

There was a brief silence and Slade was surprised when Oliver grinned at him, "We ride together, we die together."

Slade rolled his eyes but grinned back, "We're tied up in a tent with a guy pointing a rifle at us and you're quoting movies. Seems you're the one with the concussion."

Oliver chuckled. He couldn't explain it but just knowing that whatever happened they'd face it together gave him the hope he needed to not give up.

Finally Fyers walked back in with Shado, leaving her to the side of the tent and setting up a video camera on a tripod. A moment later, Yao Fai walked in wearing a uniform of the Chinese military. He walked up and stood in front of the camera. Slade and Oliver watched in silence as Yao Fai proceeded to take the fall for the catastrophic event that was about to happen. When the recording was finished, Oliver relaxed, figuring now they would be at least be safe from any further harm since Yao Fai had so fully cooperated. He was wrong.

"Thank you," Fyers said. Without any warning, he pulled his gun and shot Yao Fai in the head.

"NO!" Oliver yelled, not believing what had just happened. He vaguely registered Shado screaming a little ways away.

Slade watched in silent shock as Yao Fai was executed and felt dread washing over him when he heard the radio operator, "Sir, the plane's within range."

Time's up.


	20. Chapter 20

Author's Note: This is it, the last chapter! Honestly, I had no idea when I started this that it would go this long. It was just a writing exercise but it actually turned out to be pretty fun. Thank you to everyone that reviewed and gave me tips to help my writing, I appreciated it! I hope you enjoy this chapter. I'm going to do a sequel of sorts when the next season begins...less of a sequel and more of a continuation, actually.

"The plane's holding steady at 33,000 feet." The radio operator's voice broke Oliver out of the daze he'd been in since Yao Fai had been executed. He could hear Shado quietly crying and felt the reassuring warmth from Slade leaning against him. He felt nausea sweep over him as he caught sight of Yao Fai's lifeless body, still lying where he had been shot in front of the camera.

Fyers didn't pay any attention to his prisoners, instead focusing on the radar set up on a table, "Lock missile one on target."

Slade listened to the conversation but glanced at Oliver in concern. The kid probably hadn't realized it yet but he was trembling badly since Fyers shot Yao Fai. Shock, Slade figured, and the adrenaline that was no doubt overloading his body. He looked back at Fyers next words, "Prepare to launch on my mark."

Oliver had been silently working the knife against his bindings and could finally feel them loosen. He had noticed the shaking and it had made this task more difficult. One more good slice though and they would break. He didn't have the greatest plan but he was short on time and figured now was as good a time as ever. Now he needed to alert Slade. Here was where the months of living and training together 24/7 paid off, through the almost telepathic communication the two had developed with each other.

He looked over at Slade and almost immediately Slade, feeling Oliver's attention on him, met his gaze. An almost imperceptible tip of Oliver's head and Slade looked down, finally noticing the knife in Oliver's hands. He looked back at Oliver, trying to convey to him that this was probably a bad idea and Oliver glanced away for a moment before looking back into Slade's eyes with a look of firm determination. The message was clear, he wasn't going to let Fyers take down that plane without a fight. Slade sighed to himself, he had taught the kid too well. He nodded at Oliver, shifting slightly away so Oliver's movement wouldn't be hindered and the two quickly looked around the tent, picking up the guards positions. The two glanced at each other once more and Oliver broke through the bindings, jumping to his feet.

Oliver ran to the radio operator and stabbed him before he could send out an alert. He spun out of the way of an attacker and ran back to Shado, cutting her bindings so she could join the fight. Slade had also launched himself to his feet, adrenaline keeping his bad leg from collapsing on him. He ran at Fyers, crashing into him. He tried to dodge and attack when he could but he was still bound, making his options limited. Finally, Fyers got the upper-hand and kicked Slade in the chest, knocking him back to the ground. Fyers grabbed the hand-held radio off the table and screamed into it, "Fire the missile! Fire it now!" Dropping the radio, Fyers took off outside the tent.

The radio operator had recovered from the stabbing and rushed Oliver, both sides taking good hits. The operator got Oliver into a stranglehold but Shado finished off her guy and came to Oliver's aid, killing the radio operator before running outside. Oliver gasped from being choked but followed her out the door, watching in despair as the launcher fired the first missile. He started to sprint towards the launcher but two soldiers began firing at him, forcing him to take cover behind some crates near the tent entrance.

A large group of soldiers started to converge on Oliver but Slade came stumbling out the door, hands still tied, firing a full-auto he'd picked up somewhere. Seeing as how he couldn't get into a proper firing position, he'd chosen the spray-and-pray method, actually managing to take down the soldiers closest to Oliver. He limped past Oliver, dropping behind some crates to his front, still firing bursts to keep the remaining soldiers' heads down. He looked back at Oliver, "Go, kid!"

Oliver didn't need to be told twice, he made the run of his life to the launcher, jumping onto it and covering Shado while she broke open the electrical hatch.

Shado got into the computer and looked up at Oliver, "We need to reprogram the missile."

Oliver was in a panic, "I don't know how to reprogram a missile launcher!"

Shado reached into the hatch, pulling a piece out, "I do."

Oliver was about to reply when a soldier jumped up behind Shado. He yelled to warn her and she spun around, taking the attacker's handgun and shooting him. Unfortunately, the body fell against the launcher's control panel, pressing the button that activated the launcher's throttle. They began moving forward, away from the base.

Slade and the soldiers he was engaging all paused and glanced over as the launcher began to move. Slade rolled his eyes, leave it to Oliver to be on a runaway missile launcher. Noticing some of the soldiers breaking off to pursue Oliver and Shado, Slade began firing again, yelling to get their attention back on himself. Obviously not well trained, the whole group went back to firing haphazardly in Slade's direction, forgetting about the launcher for the time being.

Shado was scuffling with one soldier but knew they were running out of time. She made a decision. "Oliver, put the chip in!" she yelled before she somersaulted off the launcher, taking the soldier she was fighting with her.

Oliver climbed to the launcher's electrical hatch but got into a fight of his own with yet another guard. The guy got him on his back but the training and sparring with Slade paid off, Oliver managed to block most his punches and, a few well-timed moves later, was able to throw the soldier off the launcher. He hurriedly put the chip back into the launcher's computer, looking up to see the missile turn back just before hitting the plane. Oliver and the mobile launcher were well away from the base before Oliver figured out how to stop it. Jumping down, he started back towards the base. He'd taken two steps when the missile came down in the middle of it. There must have been explosives in those crates because the whole base went up in flames and explosions. Oliver hit the dirt until the explosions stopped. Slowly he sat up and surveyed the damage. The whole base was leveled, flames everywhere. His breath caught in his throat, what had happened to his friends? Shado was pretty far from the base when she'd bailed off the launcher but Slade had been in the middle of the camp. Oliver waited, hoping to see Slade or Shado walking towards him but there was nothing.

Oliver wasn't sure how much time had passed before he found the courage to walk into the camp, it had been awhile because night had fallen. He wasn't worried about enemies, he was worried about what he would find once he got there. Namely, his partner dead. He called for his friends as he made his way towards where he'd last seen Slade, "Shado!...Slade!" He paused, praying for a reply...nothing. He walked on, stopping when he came across an interesting looking box that had apparently survived. Opening it carefully, he found a bow and a few arrows. He recognized it as the bow Yao Fai had always carried. He put an arrow in and held it for a moment, his mind replaying the execution for the hundredth time. A quiet laugh startled him out of his thoughts and he instinctively leveled the bow in the general direction of the sound.

A moment later, Slade leaned out from behind some crates, "Well, I should've figured..." he paused, struggling to his feet and leaning against the crates before continuing with a smirk, "You couldn't save the day without making a mess." He managed a step towards Oliver but stopped when his wounded leg buckled.

Relief flooded Oliver as he quickly made his way to his partner, Slade slinging his arm across Oliver's shoulders to take some weight off his leg. Oliver wasn't sure how he'd managed it but Slade's hands were free of the bindings. "I thought you were dead," Oliver told him, "If I had known it would come down there..." he trailed off; what would he have done? He hadn't had the time to get back to Slade after the reprogramming; would he have sacrificed a plane full of people for him?

Luckily, Slade saved him from having to answer that question, "It's alright, kid. Gonna take more than a missile to take me down." He grinned at Oliver and Oliver smiled back but it didn't quite reach his eyes before another question came to him, "Where's Shado?"

Slade frowned, "I thought she was with you."

A much-hated voice came from behind them, "Actually, she's with me!"

Oliver and Slade quickly turned around, seeing Fyers holding a gun to Shado's head. Oliver carefully let go of Slade and stepped forward, glaring at Fyers.

Slade wasn't about to let his partner face this lunatic alone so, taking a deep breath and clenching his teeth against the searing pain, he pushed himself a couple steps to stand at Oliver's shoulder, "Let her go! It's over, Fyers!" he shouted. Unfortunately, the adrenaline that had kept him going was well out of his system causing his leg to give out. With a pained groan he fell to his knees in the dirt.

Oliver wanted to help Slade but he knew he had to deal with Fyers first. He silently leveled the bow at Fyers' head, arrow ready. "Let her go," he said threateningly.

Fyers just looked at him incredulously as he said, "Amazing. A two year operation undone because a young playboy _happened_ to wash up on the shore and now here you are. A killer." He smiled at Oliver but there was no humor in his eyes. "You wanted nothing more than to leave this island and now you can. I can call in a rescue ship, you can go home!" Fyers lowered his voice, "Tell me, Mr. Queen. Are you prepared to sacrifice your freedom for her?" He nodded at Shado and shoved her forward, waiting for Oliver's reply.

The next thing Fyers knew, there was an arrow sticking into his neck. He had enough time to wonder what he did wrong before he hit the ground, dead.

"Guess so," Oliver said, almost to himself. He realized Slade was still on the ground and dropped the bow, reaching down to pull Slade to his feet. He looped an arm around Slade's waist to steady him and Slade put his arm over Oliver's shoulders again.

Slade tried to smile at him but knew that Oliver would see right through it. In truth, he was worried about the kid. Proud of him, sure, but Oliver's voice was emotionless and when he looked at Slade, the light was gone from his eyes.

Sure enough, Oliver noticed Slade's expression and cocked his head, confused. He figured Slade would be happy that they stopped Fyers but he couldn't decipher the look on Slade's face.

Slade shook his head and squeezed Oliver's shoulder, "You did good, kid."

Oliver just looked at him silently for a moment before turning his attention to Shado, who was still standing a little ways away.

Slade followed his stare and told Oliver, "Go talk to her."

Oliver helped Slade into a sitting position against the crates and then turned, grabbing the bow and walking up to Shado.. "So, I guess we should head back to the plane..." he suggested. He was surprised when Shado shook her head.

"I am not going back with you, at least not right now," she stated.

Oliver was about to protest when Shado stopped him, "My father told me something I needed to do here and I must do it, it is my responsibility. Don't worry, I will be fine. I don't think there will be more people on the island for awhile." She paused for a second, looking at him before continuing, "But...you could come with me. I could use the help and we could continue your training."

Oliver wasn't expecting that and considered her offer. Whether it was because she was Yao Fai's daughter or because she and Oliver had grown closer, he didn't know but he felt like he owed it to her to go with her, help her with whatever it was she deemed so important to accomplish that she would leave her two allies. He was about to reply when he glanced back at Slade leaning against the crates, head slightly hanging and hand weakly clutching at the wound on his leg. He knew that if he wanted to leave with Shado, Slade would let him. At that thought, Oliver knew exactly where he belonged. Looking back at Shado he replied, "I've got a responsibility too. I'm sorry Shado."

Shado also looked at Slade for a moment before nodding slowly at Oliver, not that surprised by his choice.

"See you around?" he asked uncertainly.

Shado gave him a sad smile, "I am sure I'll see you again."

Oliver held up Yao Fai's bow, handing it to Shado. She took it from him, tears in her eyes as she looked at it. "Thank you," she said quietly, "Promise you will keep practicing?"

Oliver agreed and Shado, still clutching her father's bow, disappeared into the darkness. Oliver watched her until she was out of sight before turning and making his way back to Slade.

Slade looked up, noticing Oliver alone he asked, "Where's the girl?"

Oliver answered, "She left, apparently had something she needed to do."

Slade could hear the weariness in Oliver's voice and let it drop. He grabbed the hand Oliver offered to help him up, groaning in pain and leaning heavily against Oliver as they began making their way to the plane.

Once there, Oliver deposited Slade on his cot before grabbing the herbs and making a drink to keep the infection from setting in. Handing it to Slade, he inspected the wound. Unfortunately, the cloth from the pants were stuck to the clotted blood over the wound, leaving Oliver little choice but to cut it away in order to be able to clean it out. Thankfully the injury was a through-and-through and Oliver had it bandaged up fairly quickly.

Oliver had been silent during this entire process and Slade was even more concerned. He had never known Oliver to stay quiet for more than 15 minutes. Oliver finally finished and started to walk towards his own cot but Slade caught his arm as he walked by, tugging Oliver down to sit next to him. Once sitting, Slade regarded Oliver silently, noticing how his breathing had become ragged and he was slightly trembling again. He sighed and laid his hand on Oliver's shoulder as he said softly, "Talk to me, kid."

That was all it took and Oliver dropped his head into his hands, tears streaming down his face as he tried to tell Slade what was wrong, "It's just...Yao Fai...and m-my dad...and I didn't stop it! I sh-should've stopped it!" Oliver didn't even know what exactly he was trying to say but Slade understood, wrapping an arm around Oliver's shoulders, pulling him closer while Oliver broke down. It wasn't any one event that caused this but the culmination of every bad thing that had happened on this island. Oliver had seen people die, had watched his own father kill himself, but he had kept pressing on, trying to ignore and forget about all the bad things. But Yao Fai's execution was the breaking point, the event that unleashed the memories of every bad thing, every stress that had happened to him since the yacht sank. Slade had been in his position and knew there was nothing he could do to fix it, so he just held onto his partner and talked quietly to him, letting him know he wasn't alone.

Finally, Oliver settled down and pretty soon Slade could hear the steady breathing that indicated Oliver was asleep. He took a deep breath, arm still securely wrapped around Oliver, protecting him while he rested. Slade was going to make sure he stayed close to Oliver in the days to come but he knew that even if Oliver made it through all this, he was never going to be the same. The island and its inhabitants had made sure of that, taking the last bit of innocence Oliver had left. Slade could only try to stop Oliver from becoming as jaded as himself. Looking down at Oliver, Slade smiled sadly as he said softly, "Don't worry, brother. I've got your back." Their journey was far from over but come what may, they would face it together, shoulder to shoulder.

"_**To go it alone or to go with a **____**partner**__**. When you choose a **____**partner **__**you have to have compromises and sacrifices, but it's a price you pay. Do I want to follow my every whim and desire as I make my way through time and space, absolutely. But at the end of the day do I need someone when I'm doubting myself and I'm insecure and my heart's failing me? Do I need someone who, when the heat gets hot, has my back?...I do." - Safety Not Guaranteed **_


	21. Acknowledgements

This is just a shout-out to everyone that reviewed and followed my story, along with those that put it in their favorites! I appreciate it, I feel my writing skills benefited greatly from the advice I received from the reviews and private messages. Hopefully I'll be adding more stories soon! Once again, thank you all very much!

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You guys all rock! Thank you for your support in this story!


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